The Pack
by Padfoot Lives
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.
1. The Prophecy

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter One: The Prophecy   
  
*   
  
**   
  


Number 12 Grimmauld Place was as dark and grim as she remembered when Hermione Granger stepped inside the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix for the first time in over a year. The portraits still shrieked, Mrs. Black on the wall still screamed insults that registered only numbly in Hermione's head, and the air of pain felt stronger than ever.

Everything seemed so much worse, especially now that Sirius was no longer there. Hermione closed her eyes and swallowed the lump in her throat. She had to get past this . . . she had to forget the pain of losing Sirius, forget her feelings for him.

Yet how could she? There wasn't even anyone to talk to about it, because who would understand? How could she tell Ron or Harry that she'd fallen in love with Harry's godfather . . . and that she still loved him, even after months of his inexplicable death.

She'd sworn never to come back here, to this cruel house that had been such a primary cause of Sirius's pain and loneliness during the few weeks before . . . and yet, here she was.

_God, get over this, 'Mione, you're here for a reason. You were called, damn it, because they need you here._

Just one week before Hogwarts began, and her seventh year, the current residents of this house needed her because while searching the old Black chronicles, they had found something.

"Hermione!" the friendly voice cut through her thoughts and jerked her back to the fact that she was still standing in the middle of the hallway. "I'm glad you're here!"

"Hey, Prof - Remus," Hermione smiled sincerely and gave the thirty-four-year-old man a hug. "I've missed you guys over this month and a half, and it's been pretty long since I've seen you." she raised her eyebrows. "So - what did you need me for?"

"Couldn't do it without you," Remus grinned and led her towards the study. "Come inside, Harry and Ron are there - we'll explain."

She followed him in and was almost immediately suffocated by her two best friends throwing themselves at her in their elation at seeing each other after the weeks that had passed. She felt her joy subside a little as she remembered Sirius, and that he should have been here. Times were growing darker, and more dangerous, and with wizards and warriors dying at the hands of Voldemort's evil, there was simple joy to be found in seeing the people you cared about alive and well.

"Hey, 'Mione, you look great!" Ron complimented her, blushing slightly as he did so. "When did you straighten your hair?"

It was true that she looked different. Her body had sort of filled out over the summer, and with Ginny's insistence, she had started wearing rather more fitting clothing. After straightening her hair, she'd also cut it to her shoulders, and the look suited her.

"Some time ago," she waved it off dismissively. "I believe there's something you three have to explain to me."

"Sit down," Harry told her, pulling up an extra chair at the cluttered table. They all sat down, and Harry pushed an old piece of parchment, obviously torn out from a book, towards her. "Ron found this two days ago while we scoured the books of the Black library."

Hermione carefully scrutinized the page. The lettering and words appeared to be forming something of a rhyme, but they were in a very complicated language indeed.

"None of you could translate this?" she asked, looking up Remus.

He shook his head, a slightly sheepish smile on his mouth. "Uh - well, you see - I was never much of a languages person, and oddly enough, even Dumbledore hasn't been able to crack this. There aren't many people we can ask, and you're the only one with enough Ancient Runes study to even begin to work on this. Dumbledore suspects the Runes form the basis of this language."

"Hmmm . . ." Hermione looked down at the page again, more carefully, and noted that there were many symbols indeed that bore a strong resemblance to the Runes studies she'd done at Hogwarts. "Well, well."

"What?" Ron asked excitedly. "Did you find something?"

Lupin and Harry laughed at Ron's eagerness, although they too looked fairly intrigued. Hermione chuckled. "Patience." she said. "Is there an Ancient Runes textbook around this place?"

Harry pointed at the bookshelf with his wand. "_Accio Ancient Rones Study!_" he called. All of them being 17, they could now use magic and they had just completed their Apparation tests, with Lupin as their examiner.

The book soared towards Hermione, and she caught it. "With this, I should be able to work out most of this parchment." she shrugged. "But it'll take some time, so I suggest you three stop hovering over my shoulder and get to work on lunch, unless Mrs. Weasely's coming over, so that I can work in peace."

"We'll leave you in peace, 'Mione," Harry assured her, yanking Ron away. "Call us if you find anything."

"I assume," Hermione said dryly, before Remus reached the door, "That this parchment contains a prophecy, and that's why you assume its so important?"

"You miss nothing, Hermione," Remus chuckled and then nodded seriously. "You're right; Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and I believe this is a prophecy, which is why we must decode it. I didn't want to tell Harry or Ron until we were sure."

Hermione nodded. "I'll work as fast as I can."

  
***   


By sunset that day, with help from Fred and George who proved to be surprising obliging as they transferred varied alterations of Runes symbols to tracing paper to match them, Hermione had what she hoped was an accurate translation of the prophecy sitting in front her.

Knowing that Mrs. Weasely had already left with the twins, she called out to the others, and they came racing in, eager to know the secret of the language.

Silently, they all read the prophecy:

  
_The Bloodline Prophecy  
  
Since before the dawn of time, two creatures lived in chaos,  
One a lion, brave and strong; one a snake, clever and ruthless;  
Centuries down the lines of blood  
In the darkest time, the snake shall grow  
His power will be challenged by some, but his power shall be vanquished by none.  
Cruel is the hand of fate, for none can stop the turmoil,  
Until the ten of the century before the end,  
Five children of the lion shall rise,  
Three will know the local hog, two once did;  
And only they may vanquish the blood of the snake.  
One is the Leader, the quadra challenger,  
Brave, his claw alone will finally kill the snake;  
They will find him under the wings.  
The next is the Knight, the minion of the lion,  
Loyal, his claw will defend the heels of the pride;  
He shall be found in the rabbit's den.  
Third is the Hunter, the beast of the night,  
Untamed, his strength will find and rip the servants of the snake;  
Find him in the patronage of night's queen.  
Fourth is the Angel, the purity of the soul,  
Clever, she will provide the weapons and fight with her pride;  
She can be found amongst the "mud".  
And last is the Warrior, the defender of the pride,  
Strong, he shall protect the lions with animal power;  
He must be brought from the lair of the vampire. These are the five, the children of the lion,  
They alone may vanquish the snake,  
But they must beware, for there is no truth,  
Only that the snake and the lion may not live as one.  
These are the five, the children of the lion,  
Alone, they must fight . . . they are the Pack.  
  
_

For a long moment, there was complete silence as they finished reading the startling prophecy and then looked at each other, confusion and apprehension very vivid in green, blue, gray and brown eyes.

Ron finally cleared his throat. "Maybe it's just me, but is anyone else getting a little chilly?" He asked rather nervously.

"I don't think it's necessarily you, Ron," Remus said slowly, looking around at the others. Hermione felt the same chill. "That was a definitely chilling prophecy, and we must find out what it means, because what is plain is that this prophecy is the key to crushing Voldemort."

Harry shifted uneasily. "Damn, I hope I'm not in it." he groaned.

"All right," Hermione interjected briskly, shaking off her apprehension and pulling the prophecy towards her. "We have to figure this out. Let's start with the first line, which obviously means that two different sides - or armies - lived in enmity. Then we proceed to the specifications: and lion and a snake."

"Gryffindor and Slytherin." Harry said at once.

Hermione nodded, and saw Remus doing the same. "Next," she continued, "It says that 'Centuries down the lines of blood, / In the darkest time, the snake shall grow'. That, we can assume, means that many generations of Gryffindors and Slytherins later, the Slytherin in question - the greatest of them all - will grow stronger in a time of darkness. That, undoubtedly, is Voldemort becoming stronger now."

"Precisely, which is why this prophecy now becomes very important," Remus nodded. "What's next? About his power, and how it cannot be completely vanquished, until . . ."

Ron frowned, staring at the parchment. "'Until the ten of the century before the end'." he read out. "What does that mean?"

"Maybe it's referring to a year?" Harry suggested, his brow furrowed.

Hermione considered this carefully and then shook her head. "I think that means the ten years - the decade - before 'the end'. When does everyone think the end of the world will come?"

"2000." Harry snapped his fingers. "So it's saying that Voldemort can only be defeated in the decade before 2000, which is now - between from 1990 onwards."

"Right," Hermione agreed. "'Five children of the lion shall rise' - " she smiled.

Ron grinned and leaped in quickly to prove that he was useful. "Five Gryffindors." he supplied.

"Well done, Ron." Hermione grinned and Harry and Remus chuckled. "We can therefore proceed if there are no arguments on that one. 'Three will know the local hog; two once did, / And only they may vanquish the blood of the snake'."

"Evidently, they are the only ones who have a chance of defeating Voldemort," Remus stated thoughtfully. "As for the previous line . . . anyone have any ideas?"

"Hog . . . couldn't that be Hogwarts?" Harry shrugged.

"Yeah, could this mean that three of these five are current students at the school, and two once were, but have already graduated?"

They all stared at Ron, impressed.

"What?" he grinned. "I'm not _that_ stupid, all right?"

"I'm beginning to agree," Hermione murmured, smiling at him. Her eyes travelled down the prophecy. "All right: 'One is the Leader, the quadra challenger, / Brave, his claw alone will finally kill the snake'." She frowned. "The Leader - the one who will eventually be the one to kill Voldemort - _Harry?_"

"Oh, no." Harry groaned.

Remus smirked, but his eyes had grown grave. "I think Harry is probably the only option, especially when you consider the next line - 'They will find him under the wings'."

"Do I _look_ like there's a bird sitting on my head?"

Hermione and Ron began to laugh, and even Remus looked amused. Then he said calmly: "Well, Harry, 'under the wings' can also refer to 'under the protection', and you're certainly under Dumbledore's protection, as well as the protection of the Order of the _Phoenix_."

"Aha! Thus the wings, of the phoenix." Ron exclaimed excitedly.

"Well, we've discovered the Leader, now we need to figure out who the others are." Hermione continued. "'The next is the Knight, the minion of the lion, / Loyal, his claw will defend the heels of the pride; / He shall be found in the rabbit's den'." She glanced at the others. "Minion of the lion could refer to an ally, I suppose. He's loyal, which means he sticks by this group, and Harry, apparently. 'The heels of the pride' . . ."

"He watches the group's backs?" Harry asked.

"Most likely," Remus agreed, but he was smiling slightly. "But I think the location of this Knight is the real giveaway clue: 'the rabbit's den'."

"How many people do you know who live in rabbit's homes?" Ron demanded with a snort.

Hermione began to laugh. "_Of course_," she breathed. "It fits perfectly!"

"Eh?"

Ron looked around at them all, all staring at him expectantly and shrugged. "I don't know . . . a bu - _oh_." He suddenly went rather green. "You're not saying - ?"

"I believe, Ron, that's exactly what we - and this prophecy - are saying." Remus said with a reassuring smile. "The rabbit's den is none other than a 'burrow'. And who do we know who lives in a Burrow and is Harry's Knight?"

"Me?" Ron asked feebly.

"Never thought you'd feature in prophecies, did ya, Ron?" Harry smirked and patted his friend on the back.

Ron appeared quite astounded. Finally, his mouth opening and closing like a fish, he stuttered: "Well, if I'm - in it - then - then - Hermione has to be in there too!"

"I believe I am," Hermione responded calmly, meeting Remus's eyes for a moment. She quelled the quiver of shock and apprehension and said with as much dignity as she could: "I believe I'm this Angel, the 'pure' one - the goody-two-shoes, more like - " (they all laughed) " - and 'Clever, she will provide the weapons' - I'll be the one to make the potions, find the spells, _decode the prophecies_ - "

"And, you're the one found in "mud"," Remus added. "The 'mud' has been surrounded by inverted commas, which means its a phrase used, which leads us to Mudblood and Muggle-borns."

"Wow," Harry shook his head. "This is pretty cool. It's like it was always meant to be. So, I suppose we're the three present students at Hogwarts. That means the other two have already graduated."

"The Hunter is one," Ron pointed out.

"Yes," Hermione smiled, her nimble mind quickly working out the clues, "And he's 'untamed', 'the beast of the night', and perhaps most importantly, 'in the patronage of night's queen'."

"What does _that_ mean?" Ron demanded.

Hermione smiled at Remus. "It means, Ron, that the Hunter is not entirely human. That he is under the influence of the ruler of night - the _moon_. In short, he's a werewolf."

"Merlin's beard," Remus sank down into a chair weakly. "So _I'm_ in this lion's pride as well?"

"Apparently so," Harry said cheerfully. "We wouldn't have any other, Remus, believe me!"

"So the four of us are four of the members of the Pack," Ron said, looking down at the prophecy again in some awe. "But there's one more - one more member of the Pack to find."

They all looked at each other, each just as perplexed. And Hermione knew they were all wondering the same thing:

Who was the Warrior?

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: Just an idea I had that I thought would make a good story. So who is the Warrior, huh? Hehe. Please, please review and let me know if you want me to continue . . . 


	2. Secret of the Warrior

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Two: Secret of the Warrior   
  
*   
  
**   
  


"Well!" Ron finally broke the silence (as usual). "This isn't going to be as easy as we thought. By far, this Warrior's clues are the most cryptic and complicated."

Harry exhaled heavily. "He's right."

Hermione stared down at the parchment, and finally suggested rather wearily: "We've all worked hard today, and any more strain and we might drop dead - and that wouldn't do, would it? Maybe we should proceed and come back to who the Warrior could be after we've cracked the rest of this prophecy. Unless anyone wants to get some dinner and some sleep before getting back to this."

She personally wanted to finish this prophecy, because she didn't think she could sleep, no matter how tired, after all that they'd just discovered. Looking around, she saw that her companions felt the same.

"Okay," Harry peered down at the parchment. "Skipping the Warrior bit, and then the part where it says these five Gryffindors alone can possibly defeat Voldemort, it then says 'But they must beware, for there is no truth, / Only that the snake and the lion may not live as one'." He raised his eyebrows. "Not very encouraging, is it?"

Remus smiled slightly. "I think the prophecy is warning the reader not to place too much stock in what it says, because this gives us neither the means nor the power to defeat Voldemort, but only the knowledge that it's possible that we _might_."

"Mighty optimistic, aren't you, Moony?" Ron groaned.

There was some laughter at that, and Hermione smiled, but it was with very serious thoughts that she turned back to the prophecy. "'May not live as one' . . . doesn't that link back to Trelawney's prophecy about how Voldemort and Harry cannot survive while the other lives?"

They nodded. "I think we can safely say that's accurate," Remus agreed, and he sighed. "The rest of the prophecy is easy enough, it merely repeats the knowledge of the Gryffindors and calls them 'the Pack'. Which therefore only leaves us with - "

"The Warrior." Hermione muttered at the same time that Harry and Ron did. She shook her head. "Great. Then we might as well get to it."

They read the part about the Warrior once more:

_And last is the Warrior, the defender of the pride,  
Strong, he shall protect the lions with animal power;  
He must be brought from the lair of the vampire._  
  


"Well, we know he's strong and that he's the protector of the pack," Harry shrugged lamely.

"What else do we know?"

"He's a Gryffindor, already graduated - probably around the same time as you, Remus, because of the two generations thing."

They were silent for a moment, and then Hermione voiced what she was certain they were all thinking. "That doesn't help us much at all. Remus's year and those near it must have held at least fifty strong Gryffindors!"

"Yes, but not many of them are still alive." Remus murmured quietly.

Hermione glanced down, blinking back tears. She couldn't bear to think about it . . . she couldn't afford to start thinking about it. She glanced up at Harry and Ron, who were looking a little subdued, and forced herself to curb her thoughts.

"Let's get back to the clues." She said quickly, with a wan smile. "The location might help us, seeing as its been very useful for all the others."

Harry began to snigger. "Uh - I don't think so." He said, eliciting a chuckle from Remus.

"'He must be brought from the lair of the vampire'." Ron read, raising his eyebrows and looking revolted. "Oh come on! Tell me we don't have to fight alongside a _vampire!_"

Remus cleared his throat. "If I may be so bold as to comment, if you weren't acquainted with me, you wouldn't be so thrilled to work alongside a werewolf either. Whoever this vampire is, give him a chance."

Ron grinned. "You know what? You're right, but it's still weird."

"Sorry, guys, but I don't think you'll be fighting alongside an actual vampire any time soon," Hermione smirked, rather reluctant to burst Ron's bubble at becoming more 'accepting' of the magical creatures.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I mean, how many vampires do you guys know who were in Gryffindor - like, _ever?_"

Ron cleared his throat and Remus looked amused. "An excellent point."

"We're not going to get anywhere with this part," Hermione said slowly, reading it over again. "I mean 'the lair of the vampire'? Vampires don't necessarily have a specific _lair_, at least, not like rabbit's do."

Harry and Remus hastily smothered their laughter with coughs. Ron scowled good-naturedly. "I resent that."

"I think its time to call Dumbledore." Remus suggested, shrugging. "He might be able to help us with this one, and he'd be pleased to know Hermione worked out the prophecy so brilliantly."

Hermione felt her face grow hot, and tried not to feel pleased at praise that had grown so unfamiliar as of late. Instead, she looked up again. "None of us can Apparate into Hogwarts, so we can only ask him to come here." She stood up, and on a sudden thought, turned to the empty portrait on the wall, that they had moved earlier. "Phineus!" she called. "Phineus, are you there?"

They all watched the portrait, hoping for some sign that Sirius's great-great uncle would have paid them a visit.

"Yes?" an irritable voice finally spoke from the empty canvas. "What do the inhabitants of my worthless nephew's house want from me this time?"

"He wasn't worthless." Hermione snapped, furious.

"Forgive me, Mudblood." Phineus drawled. Remus was glowering at the canvas, and had been since the remark about Sirius, and Ron and Harry moved forward with their wands, but Hermione laid a restraining hand on each of their arms and shook her head.

Sighing, she said, "Could you please ask Professor Dumbledore to Apparate here right away, Phineus?" she asked in as calm a tone as she could manage. "It's very, very important."

"Isn't it always?" the Slytherin Headmaster drawled. "Now, should I do your bidding, or shouldn't I? After all, Dumbledore hasn't given me an order, has he? So why should I - ?"

"Now, Phineus!" Remus barked, making Ron jump in shock.

The wheezy cackle erupted from the portrait. "All right, Lupin, there's no need to lose your manners just because I insulted your best friend. I'll be off."

And there was silence. Ron stared at Remus in awe, whose expression softened slightly.

"He's ridiculous," Remus muttered in explanation. "He did care about Sirius, no matter how much he tries to insult him now, and he was upset when he - died. He just refuses to accept that a Slytherin dared to care about a Gryffindor."

"You can't exactly blame him, especially after reading a prophecy about the enmity like we just have," Ron pointed out. "Although I still think he's inexcusable vermin."

"I heard that, Freckles."

Hermione groaned, annoyed again. "Did you speak to Professor Dumbledore?" she demanded.

There was a _Crack!_ and a familiar, gentle voice spoke with justa touch of its usual amusement: "I believe he did, Hermione. It's nice to see you again."

"Hello, Professor." Hermione smiled, turning around as they all did to face Dumbledore, who looked slightly tired, but his blue eyes twinkled like always. She picked up the parchment. "We managed to decode the language of the prophecy."

Remus cleared his throat. "Actually, Dumbledore, Hermione managed to decode the language. We all assisted in discovering its meaning, and I think you'll find it very interesting."

They spent the next half an hour showing Dumbledore the Bloodline Prophecy and explaining to him how they came to conclusions about who each of the members of the Pack were. He agreed with their theories, and seemed to be rather impressed. When they were done, he looked grave, but his eyes still held their humour.

"My, my," he said, "The Pack was sitting under our noses all this time, and we never knew it. Well done, all of you. Of course, you do realize what this means."

Ron gulped. "We'll have to do full-fledged battle."

There was some tension in the air at the thought, because none of them - except for Harry - had been prepared to bear the weight of the fate of the entire wizarding (and Muggle) world. They had to fight. And Hermione knew it was up to them to win.

"There's still the problem of the Warrior," Harry spoke up, tapping the parchment with his wand and emitting sparks. Hermione snatched the paper away, afraid Harry would accidentally destroy it.

Dumbledore focused carefully on the Warrior part, and Hermione could feel the suspense as their all silently waited to see what he could make of it. Remus appeared as calm as ever, but Hermione knew that he - like she was - was jittery inside. Ron was hopping from one foot to the other. Harry was cracking his knuckles and tapping his wand against the palm of the other hand.

"This is indeed cryptic," Dumbledore finally said after a long moment that felt like days. "But I believe I might have a theory - a very unusual, very unexpected theory that even I am having a hard time believing."

"What?" Ron looked like he might implode with excitement and suspense.

"The 'lair of the vampire', I believe, refers not specifically to the home of a vampire, but to its _domain_, it's classification."

Harry and Remus wore identical thoughtful frowns, but Hermione could see Ron was lost. "So, you mean, the 'lair' refers to what a vampire actually _is?_" she asked Dumbledore, trying to make it clearer for him.

"Quite right," he smiled. "And what do we all - and even Muggles, I believe - define vampires as?"

"Creatures." Ron blurted.

Hermione groaned. Harry grinned, and Remus said kindly: "I believe Professor Dumbledore means something more specific, along the lines of the _Un-Dead_, perhaps?" he asked, looking at Dumbledore. 

"Precisely, the Un-Dead." Dumbledore agreed. "Which leads me to believe that this Warrior is a person caught between life and death, neither alive nor dead, but trapped in - a void, of sorts, and he 'must be brought' (as the prophecy says) from that void."

"But, Professor," Harry protested. "There must be over a million of these mysterious wizarding voids all over the world, and any Gryffindor could have ended up in any of them. How on earth can we pinpoint a certain one and find the Warrior?"

"Think of what you've just said, Harry," Dumbledore replied quietly, "And put your word - _mysterious_ - into strong play."

Hermione looked at the prophecy and slowly, a theory began to work its way into her mind. But it seemed impossible . . . it seemed insane . . . she wasn't thinking straight, she couldn't be!

"Merlin's beard," Remus suddenly said, "Look at the last clue: 'protect the lions with _animal_ power'."

"Couldn't that merely mean he's got raw, untamed strength and power?" Ron asked, raising his eyebrows.

"I think that's too much of a coincidence, Ron," Hermione said, shaking her head. "I think this prophecy is referring to actual ANIMAL power - which means - "

"That the Warrior is an Animagus." Remus finished weakly. "Dear God."

Hermione looked at Harry and saw him look from Dumbledore's serious, but gradually delighted expression, to Remus's face of incredulous hope, and finally he met her own eyes, and she saw the same understanding that had dawn on her appear there.

And for the first time in a long time, Hermione dared to hope.

Ron, however, appeared destined to remain at sea. "What?" he asked, puzzled, looking around at them all. "What's with the expressions? What did you guys figure out? Who's the Warrior?"

"Ron, you great stupid prat!" Harry chuckled, grinning broadly now. "Who in this world do you know who is a Gryffindor, an Animagus - "

"Professor McGonagall?" Ron interrupted, looking astounded, and earning laughter from Remus and Dumbledore.

" - _and died under very unusual, inexplicable circumstances?_" Harry finished, glaring at his best friend.

Ron blinked. And finally, Hermione saw light enter his eyes. "Merlin's beard!" he yelled. "It can't be!"

"Luna did tell me there was more to it than we thought," Harry murmured regretfully. "If only we're figured it out sooner."

"It's not too late." Dumbledore said gently. "So I suggest we get to work researching and figuring out the escape route."

Hermione felt a curious seedling of what felt astonishingly like ecstasy grow inside her. _It's not too late . . ._

"I don't believe this." Ron shook his head. "This is unbelievable. You _can't_ be telling me that the last member of the Pack is _him_."

"Pretty suitable and accurate when you think about it, isn't it, Ron?" Remus smiled and Hermione couldn't help but mirror the expression. "The Warrior is none other than Sirius Black."

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: I'm sure most people figured out who the Warrior would be (and I can only hope this is somewhat how Rowling ends Books 6 and 7). Thanks for reviewing so far (don't stop now!) and if there are any suggestions, I'd like to hear them. Enjoy the story!   
  
Note to Bashful C: Yes, you can use the prophecy if you really want to, but maybe you could mention where you got the original from ('coz I guess it's kinda copyright ;-)) 


	3. Beyond the Veil

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Three: Beyond the Veil   
  
*   
  
**   
  


Hermione leaned back against the pillow of her bed, an old heavy book on her lap. She tried to concentrate, tried to focus on finding the secret of the Veil that Sirius had fallen into, but she couldn't stop thinking about him.

She stared, unseeing, at the page and her mind began to wander, searching through her hordes of memories and finding those that stood out most prominently. She remembered the first time they'd met, the fear and anger she'd felt at him, only to be replaced by sympathy and compassion when she'd found out the truth about Wormtail and him. She remembered the letter he'd sent her two Christmases ago, asking her to come to Grimmauld Place because Harry was depressed and couldn't be cheered up . . .

_ . . . Dear Hermione,  
How are you? I hope things are going well at school and that you're well on your way to collecting those OWL thingies you were talking about. I know you have plans on going skiing with your parents, but I was wondering if you might like to stop by the place and visit for a little while. Little Prongs is rather low and might need some cheering up.  
Love,  
Uncle Padfoot . . . _

Hermione realized there was a smile playing on her mouth as she remembered that letter. Sirius had had to be careful, of course, with that old bat Umbridge in the school - but he'd worked out his simple code brilliantly and she'd understood everything.

_Uncle Padfoot . . ._ That hadn't exactly been the most cheering sign-off, and she had been inclined to wince at the thought of him thinking of her in the light of a niece, but she assumed that he'd had no choice but to sign that way.

Of course, that didn't mean he'd ever felt anything other than a close friendship for her!

With a slight sigh, she closed her eyes for a long moment and let the memories wash over her. Finally, she popped them open again and focused on the open page in front of her. It was time to find Sirius, and bring him back - and this book was going to get her there.

By midnight, she had found it.

  
__

"One of the most unexplained and mysterious chasms in the magical world is that of a curtain that drifts inexplicably in the darkest arenas of enigma. Most commonly called the Veil, a form of it lurks in the Department of Mysteries, in the care of the Ministry of Magic. This Veil holds the secret of life and death. It is a void that is breached only by entrance into its depths, and once a human enters, he or she is trapped forever - neither alive, nor dead, but sometimes able to view the world he or she left behind through windows.

To save a human from the clutches of the Veil is near impossible and has never been known to happen. However, great philosopher Albert Waffleck informs the magical community that it is possible for a human to be rescued - only by the breaching of the Veil by a chain of purity or by ultimate sacrifice."

  


Hermione stared down at the page, re-reading the paragraphs and wondered what on earth a 'chain of purity' and 'ultimate sacrifice' was supposed to mean. She closed her eyes. All these riddles were beginning to give her a headache, but she had to keep working - for Sirius and for the Pack.

She pried her eyes open, slipped a bookmark into the page and shut the book before climbing out of bed. She trudged towards the door, wondering briefly whether or not she should wake the others - they were all tired, after all.

Changing her mind, she walked back to bed and opened the book again. She could figure this out, and if she couldn't, there was always morning to use for discussion. _Let them sleep, 'Mione . . . who knows when we may next get a chance at a good night's rest?_

Chain of purity . . . what in hell??! Ultimate sacrifice - what were they supposed to do, kill themselves? That couldn't be, because the prophecy stated that they had to fight. And they also had to bring back Sirius, not just for the prophecy, but because he was trapped - and because they all needed him.

"I hate Albert Waffleck." She grumbled. Why couldn't these ancient wizards just state the solutions and situations in clear, un-cryptic-ized language? Was that so hard? Even she, the expert at reading between the lines, was completely lost.

_I guess it'll just have to wait till morning,_ she thought, smothering a yawn. She struggled to stay awake, but after two long days of hard work - both mental and wand-oriented - she was exausted to boot . . . and her eyes closed as she fell asleep with the book open across her stomach and dreams of Sirius slowly invading her subconscious . . .

  
***   


"Morning, 'Mione," Remus greeted her with an obnoxiously cheery smile and hot mug of coffee when she stumbled into the kitchen late the following morning, her eyes surrounded by slight dark circles. "Didn't sleep well?"

She responded with a disgruntled growling sound and thumped the heavy old book down open on the table. "The Veil." she muttered irritably.

"Wow, great work!" Harry enthused as he and Ron hurried around the table to look over Remus's shoulder.

With a grunt, she gulped down half the coffee in one go and blinked hard. Finally, her vision began to focus and she watched the interested, excited and puzzled expressions cross her the faces of the rest of the Pack.

_Pack of wolves,_ she thought with a slight smile, observing the vast quantity of food which had been consumed by her companions in less than an hour. _We're going to need Mrs. Weasely back here soon . . ._

"Oh bloody hell, can't they just state the obvious and be done with it?" Ron's voice demanded exasperatedly.

Hermione glanced up. Apparently they had finished reading about the Veil, and judging by the expressions on Harry and Ron's faces, they were no closer to understanding the drivel written there than she was. Remus shook his head with a sigh. "This is complicated."

"Yeah, tell me about it." She smirked.

She stared down into the dark, thick liquid of her coffee and found Sirius's eyes staring back at her. They were that colour; that warm, dark coffee-color that had been growing less haunted by the day and could bore deep into her and make her feel like he could see right into her soul . . . and read the emotions in her heart.

Across from her, the three male residents of the house were discussing possibilities.

" - the name of a weapon, maybe?" Ron was suggesting, "Like a sort of necklace that will allow safe passage through the Veil? The Chain of Purity?"

"Probably would have been highlighted or italicized if it was the name of something," Remus pointed out, "Maybe he's trying to explain that someone with pure intentions - like true friendship or love - can get in through the Veil and bring the person they feel those emotions for back."

Hermione groaned. Her head was beginning to throb from exhaustion, her mind was growing edgy with uncharacteristic impatience, and her heart was beginning to ache from longing.

"The 'ultimate sacrifice' part," Harry commented, "Is this Waffleck person expecting people to sell their souls or lives or something to restore the trapped person?"

"We really can't tell, Harry - "

"Should we maybe call Dumbledore again?"

" - Time isn't something we have a lot of, especially if Voldemort's getting closer to Diagon Alley and Hogwarts - "

"This is our task now, our duty, we have to fight now - and we need Sirius, and not just for the official Pack - "

"We've always been a pack. Nothing will change that, and that's why we need to get Sirius back."

Hermione didn't even realize she'd been the one to speak the last sentence until she looked up and saw them all staring at her, smiles on their faces. They agreed, she knew, and she knew she was right. They had always been a pack - together, loyalty and trust and friendship binding them together stronger than a prophecy could. And they owed the same loyalty and love their fallen member had showed them to him now.

"We're going in." She said, standing up. "This information about the Veil can go to hell or not; it doesn't matter right now, because we have to go in. Into the Department of Mysteries; today."

"Hang on a minute," Ron grinned. "Is Hermione Granger suggesting we break a few rules and go in without a plan?"

A reckless burst of longing and energy was beginning to flow through her and she supposed that side of her personality had been unlocked by the death she'd seen and by the knowledge the prophecy had given them. "That's exactly what she's suggesting."

Harry and Ron high-fived her and then each other and disappeared to change. Remus was smiling as he turned to Hermione and said quietly, "So tell me, what do we do once we get into the Department of Mysteries?"

She smiled. "Improvise."

  
***   


Mr. Weasely got them into the Ministry of Magic and from there, it wasn't a hard route to the Department of Mysteries. Quiet and chilly, it was the source of many of their nightmares, and they knew they were only getting closer to the harsher player of their worst dreams.

Harry moved in the lead, subconsciously taking on the role of the Leader without even realizing it. Hermione followed automatically, Remus went after her, keeping a close ear trained on their surroundings, and Ron brought up the rear - watching their backs like the Knight he was, Hermione realized with a slight smile.

And finally, they reached the room, and climbed down the flights of stairs to the lower level. There, across from them, fluttered the eerie Veil with its whispers and voices . . . its signs that indeed - complete death did not lurk beyond.

"It's time." Remus said quietly.

Hermione steeled herself and watched Ron wipe his sweaty palms on his shirt before gripping his wand tightly. "Who wants to go first?" he asked feebly.

They all glanced at Harry, but Hermione saw something in his eyes - sheer fear lurking beneath the courage visible in those emerald green - and she knew that Harry had had the worst nightmares of all about this Veil, because he had watched it happen . . .

"I'll go." she said in what she hoped was a calm voice. "I'm the Angel, after all - so I think I'm the closest we'll get to that stupid 'chain of purity'. If I call back to you guys, follow me in."

She was less than a foot away from the fluttering curtain when Remus's hand on her shoulder stopped her. She looked back into his worried gray eyes and then at Ron, who choked out: "What if you don't call back?"

"Then it'll be time to call Dumbledore." She replied calmly. "Don't worry about me."

Harry reached out and squeezed her hand and in that sign of gratitude, Hermione suddenly felt a bolt of energy shoot through her, making her feel oddly hardened, oddly immune . . . and suddenly, she understood the meaning behing the words in the book.

"Chain of purity," she whispered. "That's us."

"What?" Ron asked, and Remus's brow furrowed.

Hermione raised her hand, which was still clasping Harry's. "This," she explained. "We're meant to _create_ the chain of purity; and we can, because we're the descendents of the lion - the personification of _good_ as opposed to evil. We have to create a link that will make us immune to the power of the Veil and allow us to get into the Veil, find Sirius, and the last one of the chain will remain on this side . . . and pull us all back."

"Brilliant!" Remus said hoarsely, clapping her on the back. "So let's get to work on our chain then."

Ron grabbed Harry's other wrist and Remus did the same for Ron, forming the end of the link. And he planted his feet firmly into the ground, while Hermione took and deep breath, and envisioning Sirius as she remembered him firmly in her mind, stepped in through the ethereal curtains.

A cold wave flowed over her, and looking down at herself, she realized she was almost translucent - rather like a ghost. Harry, standing just behind her, looked like she did, and so did the part of Ron's hand that was visible through the curtain.

"Don't move." she said to Harry, and her voice floated like a bubble through water towards him. He nodded, and stretched his arm as she did hers, pushing through the strange force, like a wall of liquid, to move forward into the Veil.

And then she saw him. He wasn't translucent, but solid like always, kneeling on a rock with only his profile visible, staring into a shining window which she assumed allowed him to look into the life he'd left behind. She wondered what he was seeing.

A lump formed in his throat. He didn't look thinner, in fact he looked exactly like he had when he'd fallen in; not being entirely alive, his physical appearance hadn't changed. But there was emotion about him that caused a stab in her heart. A certain sorrow . . . anger . . . longing . . . guilt . . . he was going through so much. She could feel it.

Maintaining a tight hold on Harry's hand, who, she could see, was staring wide-eyed at Sirius, as if he couldn't believe it. Hermione swallowed and turned back to the Marauder. Moving forward a little, she felt Harry take a step forward as well and half of Ron appeared in the Veil. She couldn't move forward any further, or Remus would fall in as well and then they would all be lost . . . but Sirus was still a few feet away from her, out of her reach.

"Sirius!" She called loudly, but her voice became that bubble again and floated slowly through the liquid air between them. "Can you hear me? Sirius!"

His gaze, which had been focused on the shining window, wavered. He blinked and he seemed surprised, as if he wasn't sure why he was hearing voices. But he didn't turn, so he didn't see her.

"Padfoot! It's me - Hermione!" she yelled desperately. It was draining her energy she realized, to stand in the Veil, and she could see Harry and Ron growing paler too. "Sirius! I'm here, damn you, turn around!"

He shook his head violently, as if trying to shake her voice away. She realized with a pang of sadness and helplessness that he thought he was hearing things . . . obviously he'd done so before . . . 

"SIRIUS!!!"

And then, so slowly that the weight and pain weighing down on her multiplied terribly, he turned at last and his eyes, coffee-colored and intense, filled with shock and incredulous disbelief. Then, almost like in slow motion, delight grew inside them.

"'Mione?" his voice, quiet and hoarse, reached her ears. "Harry? Is that really you?"

"It's us, Sirius, come on!" She called back. "You need to come back . . . come with us!"

His elation faded. "I - I can't," he choked out, not moving from the rock but facing her fully now. "I can't leave this rock - I'm trapped. No one can leave their rocks unless another weight takes their place."

She stared at him, horror-struck and glanced back at Harry, eyes wide and pained. They couldn't stay here much longer . . . but they couldn't leave without Sirius . . . they had to do something! But what could they do? Remus was probably struggling with all their weights, and Ron was slipping further into the Veil. What could they do? How could they bring Sirius back if he was trapped on the rock?

_Unless another weight takes their place . . ._

Sirius was the Warrior. He was the protector. The Pack _needed_ him; without him they would be left vulnerable, lost. And Dumbledore was always around to be the brains of the operations. Besides, Remus needed Padfoot - needed his best friend back. Harry deserved his godfather. Ron needed some laughter and prank-playing in his life again, now that Fred and George were working at the joke shop.

In that instant, Hermione knew what she had to do.

"Harry!" she called back. "Get ready to grab Sirius's arm, all right?"

His eyes widened in horror as he seemed to realize what she was saying, but she forced herself to turn away so that he couldn't pull her back; the force of the liquid air was too much . . .

"Sirius!" she yelled to the shocked Marauder. "When I yell 'three', you need to leap from your rock. Never mind if you think you won't break free; you will - just aim for grabbing Harry's hand as you jump."

"WHAT?!" he looked furious. "What are you going to - _NO!_"

"Just do it!" she snapped back. "It's the only way, damn it! You have no choice! Do it for Harry, for the rest of the wizarding world!"

He stared at her, pain unlike anything she'd ever seen filling his eyes. She was shaken. Did he care so much?

"One . . ." she yelled, ignoring the screams and yells from Harry, Ron _and_ Remus reaching her through the waves of the Veil. " . . Two . . . THREE!"

Hermione and Sirius both moved at the same time, but neither got very far, because at that moment, a blinding flash of silvery light burst through the windows of the Veil and like a powerful Expulsion Spell, they were all flung backwards and thrown out of the Veil, where they hit the hard ground, bruised - but alive.

"Merlin's beard." Ron grunted, pushing himself up into the sitting position and getting off where he'd fallen on Remus's legs.

Hermione opened her eyes and found herself staring right into Sirius's eyes. And he looked angry. "What in hell did you think you were doing, giving up your life like that?" he demanded. "Are you _crazy?_"

"In love, maybe." She muttered, under her breath, wincing from the impact of falling.

"What was that?" he demanded, frowning.

She groaned. "Nothing, nothing. Good to have you back, Sirius, by the way."

At that he grinned, and he managed to give her a brief hug (one that sent fiery heat exploding throughout Hermione's skin at his touch) before he was overcome by Ron, Harry and Remus throwing themselves at their fallen friend and convincing themselves that he was actually and really back.

By the time Hermione struggled to sit up, they were all staring at her. "You must have been crazy!" Ron yelled angrily. "What if that hadn't worked - we would have lost _you!_"

"Big deal." She shrugged.

They looked outraged. Then Remus, shaking his head, said, "Well, I guess there was no way it wouldn't have worked - you figured out the code of 'ultimate sacrifice' as well, didn't you?" He helped her to her feet and squeezed her shoulder. "Well done, 'Mione."

"Yeah, so don't I get a proper hug now?" Sirius asked her, grinning.

She smirked. "Sure, Sirius, you can get a kiss too if you like - but not until you do something I've been meaning to ask you to do for a long time now: get a haircut."

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: Well, that was Chapter Three, and Sirius is back (yaaay! :-)). I'll upload the next chapter as soon as possible, and please keep reviewing, because the reviews really help! Enjoy! 


	4. Seventh Year

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Four: Seventh Year   
  
*   
  
**   
  


He got the haircut. Mrs. Weasely had cut it herself, so that it wasn't a hair longer than Harry's and relatively neater. Hermione's pulse had gone into dangerous overdrive when he had returned from the Burrow and with that slow, rakish grin, told her that she owed him a hug and a kiss.

Hell, but the man was sexy.

_He's also seventeen years older than you are, although he looks a decade younger . . . but that's not the point. He's your best friend's godfather._

Hermione was on the Hogwarts Express, and they were on their way to begin their seventh year at Hogwarts. As there hadn't been any attacks in the past few days, anywhere, Diagon Alley had been a fun day out for the Pack, and now, they were back to school and Hermione was already missing Sirius and Remus . . . Sirius particularly.

_You need to stop thinking like this! You're both part of a team now, you can't afford to let your emotions cloud your judgement in a life or death situation like this._

If only her heart was as easy to convince as her mind.

Harry and Ron were playing Exploding Snap near her, and Ginny was talking to Neville on the other side of the compartment. Terry Boot was asleep in the seat beside Hermione, his head lolling on her shoulder as she stared out of the window. Luna was tucked into her corner, reading _The Quibbler_ upside-down as usual, her wand stuck behind her ear.

"Sirius is alive, by the way." Ron suddenly announced.

Luna's eyes appeared over the top of the magazine with that half-bemused, mildly curious expressions. Terry didn't even stir. Neville, on the other hand, jumped violently. "You're joking!" He squeaked. "How did you guys do it?"

"It was Hermione, really." Harry smiled broadly. "He wasn't really dead. But he's back anyway, and he's at Gri - his house."

Hermione sighed. Merlin's beard, but she missed him. After only _three_ hours!

She buried her face in her hands. She was the Angel of the Pack, one of the five who were faced with the sole power of possibly defeating Voldemort, and here she was, unable to stop thinking about a handsome, daredevil, thirty-four-year-old Warrior who, by the way, had just been brought back from the dead.

She was crazy.

  
***   


The Hogwarts feast was just as spectacular and entertaining as always. This time, Hermione, Harry and Ron were the seniors, the seventh-years and it felt pretty cool to be gazed at with awe by the timid first and second-years.

Hermione picked at her food despondently, barely listening to the excited, animated conversation all around. She'd gotten used to Remus and Sirius being around whenever she needed to talk or simply come down to breakfast, despite the short time . . . she supposed the bonds of the Pack ran much deeper than they'd ever realized. She was just glad she still had Harry and Ron here.

Just then, Dumbledore stood up to make his start-of-term speech. Hermione, looking up at the table, noticed that there was one empty place settings. There was obviously going to be a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and Hermione briefly wondered who it was going to be. She couldn't quite quell a surge of foolish hope . . .

"Welcome back, for another year," Dumbledore beamed around at the students. "I don't have much to say about this year. I may begin by saying that I believe qualities such as loyalty and unity will be most importance during times as dark as these, and I have full confidence in this school - " (The Gryffindors and Slytherins exchanged vicious looks) " - For those of you who have noticed Professor Hagrid's absence, I may assure you that he will be here in a few days."

Hermione smiled slightly, but felt a twinge of disappointment anyway. So the empty seat was Hagrid's; how could she not have realized he was missing? She really needed to focus her mind, especially with NEWTs this year (and Voldemort, too, but for a student of her calibre, schoolwork had to take the frontseat for now).

"Hey, then who's the new DADA teacher?" Ron asked, frowning, bewildered. "None of the teachers here are new."

Almost on cue, Dumbledore continued. "I also would like to announce the assignation of Defense Against the Dark Arts post for _this_ year. I'm pleased to inform the school that Professor Severus Snape has kindly consented to take on the task in addition to his Potions classes."

There was dead silence in the Great Hall and then the Slytherins erupted into applause. The rest of the school was noticeably silent. Hermione felt her heart sink horribly; Snape might be on Dumbledore's side, but he was beyond doubt the nastiest git to grace the surface of the earth - and his cheer since Sirius's 'death' hadn't enamoured him to her in any way whatsoever.

Harry and Ron were looking at her, and at each other, in the liveliest horror. "How could Dumbledore do this to us?" Harry moaned. "During our last year here, too! This is like a nightmare come true."

"'Kindly consented', my ass," Ron growled, glaring at the hook-nosed teacher with venom to spare. "He's been willing to kill for this job for all our school years, and probably before! Slimy git."

As much as Hermione disapproved of Ron's open insults and hostility towards Hogwarts teachers, she found herself, at that moment, in full agreement with him.

_This is going to be a long, hard year._

  
***   


Two weeks later, without much contact between the separate members of the Pack, Hermione found herself caught in the middle of the worst lesson of Double Potions that she had ever endured in her lifetime.

It began tolerably, in a class of only Gryffindors (thankfully, the Slytherins were in a discliplinary meeting with Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore), on a cool autumn morning. Unfortunately, Snape seemed to have had a bad Defense Against the Dark Arts class just before, because he was a filthy mood and ready to slaughter anybody who got on his side.

And wasn't it just typical, Hermione thought, that on that particular day, his bad side was tickled by none other than her.

They were concocting a Brew that would Stopper-Death, a potion that Snape explained coolly would freeze a wounded or even dying person's bodily functions so that they would remain in that state until a cure could be found, or something of the sort. The potion was extremely dangerous, advanced and powerful, he said, and if the potion was brewed even slightly wrong (his contemptous eyes lingered on Neville), there would be terrible consequences, even a possible _reverse_ of the Brew's purpose - in simple terms, an accident could lead to death.

So it was with a very tense atmosphere that the class paired up and began collecting the ingredients that Snape wrote down on the board. Hermione was working with Dean Thomas, and left him to the duty of getting the water to boil just right while she went up to Snape's table to collect the ingredients.

She'd read all about this potion, so she gave Dean an encouraging smile and didn't think there'd be a problem with their brew. Neville, however, who was working with Seamus right under Snape's nose, was a different story. But Hermione forced herself to try not to interfere.

However, when Harry nudged her from her other side and jerked his head towards Neville, Hermione glanced up and heard Snape, breathing down Neville's neck, tell him and Seamus that they had to stir the brew _anti-clockwise_.

_But I just saw Neville and Seamus stir the brew anti-clockwise six times like they were supposed to. If Snape makes them do it once more . . ._

Her eyes sprang wide open in horror. "Professor Snape!" she squealed, practically knocking Harry over in her attempt to get out into the aisle of the classroom. "They can't stir their potion once more!"

"Miss Granger, what do you want this time?" Snape asked sharply, looking at her irritably.

"You can't make Neville stir the potion again, unless he adds the dragon claws," she said urgently. "He's already stirred it - six times!"

"Miss Granger, do not assume that you are aware of everything that occurs in my class, and do _not_ ever give me an order again!" Snape barked angrily. "Ten points from Gryffindor! I haven't seen Longbottom stir his cauldron six times, and I am therefore asking him to do it."

Hermione stared at Neville. "But he already - "

The entire class was watching. Harry had pulled out his wand and he and Ron were moving closer to Hermione, almost as if they were afraid Snape would curse her in rage.

"Longbottom, how many times did you stir your cauldron?" Snape asked in a dangerous, silky voice.

Neville's lower lip quivered. He was pale, and looked absolutely terrified. Seamus obviously hadn't paid attention when Neville had stirred, because he shot Hermione a desperate glance. Finally Neville whispered: "I'm not sure, sir. Maybe five."

"Five," Snape repeated with a mocking look at Hermione. "One more is correct, is it not, Miss Granger? Or are you about to disagree with me about my own class."

"He isn't sure," Hermione ground out through gritted teeth. "If he does it again, he and Seamus could _die!_ I saw him stir _six_ times; I was keeping an eye on him - "

"Of course you were," Snape cut her off smoothly, looking like remarkably like a snake about to strike a mouse in the bushes. "Dear Miss Granger, the superior know-it-all of the year, the patronizing witch who deems Longbottom below her skill and therefore keeps a close eye on him to make sure he does screw up - you don't have a very good opinion of Longbottom, do you, Granger?"

"She never said that!" Ron snapped.

"Another ten points from Gryffindor, Weasely, for contradicting me and attempting to be chivalrous - Miss Granger may have changed, but she is not _that_ attractive, believe me."

Hermione felt her throat clog with tears and her head throb like someone was jabbing at the inside with spears. Her grip on her wand tightened shooting red sparks around the classroom. She was tired . . . tired from studying, exhausted from duelling practice and potion-research, weary from missing the rest of her pack and aching futilely for Sirius . . . she was just so tired.

"I'm sorry." She said, her voice sounding flat and like it was coming from far away. "I can't keep going on like this."

And she turned, much to the shock of her classmates, her expression calm, and walked out of the classroom. Once she was safely away from the dungeons, however, she felt the emotion come roaring back - pain and weariness and fear of what Voldemort might do next, fear of losing her friends to this battle, pain, desire, love, pain, exhaustion.

She needed the Pack. She needed Sirius. She needed someone to talk to, someone who would understand and whom she could feel safe with - and Harry and Ron were still in class, no doubt due for detention because they were undoubtedly yelling at Snape now.

As she thought about Sirius, and the grief of his 'death', another thought, a memory, drifted into her head and she found herself with an idea. 

The office was on the third floor, basically unused now, on the west side of the school . . . students sometimes went there to practice spells and no one would be there now as there was another hour before lunch - and she suddenly had a different use for the office.

Hermione hurried up to the office and slipped inside, closing and magically locking the door, hoping that no teacher felt the urge to walk nearby or come in there. Turning around, she went to the merrily burning fireplace and fumbled in a small flower pot. There, at the very bottom, was just a handful of Floo Powder, remains from Umbridge's days in the office (Hermione just hoped Floo Powder didn't expire or something like some Muggle things did).

She tossed the handful of powder into the fire, and dropped to her knees. The fire glowed and blazed bright green and with a sigh, she stuck her head into it, feeling the cold stone knobbly under her knees, and yelled as clearly as she could: "Number 12, Grimmauld Place, London!"

Her eyes squeezed shut as she felt everything spin and swirl around her, and when she felt the nauseating movement halt, she tentatively opened her eyes and found herself staring up into the gloomy study of Grimmauld Place, where she had worked out the prophecy.

There was, as far as she could see, no one in the room, and with an inward groan and a brief thought that this was becoming habit with her, she saw only one solution.

"Sirius!" she hollered. "Remus! SIRIUS!"

After a few more cries, during which she paused to see if she could hear anyone approaching, she was certain the two men were either tending to Buckbeak, or not in the house. She was ready to burst into exasperated and disappointed tears, when the sound of footsteps reached her ears and voices grew louder.

"I could have sworn I heard Hermione calling me," a familiar voice was saying as the footsteps grew louder. "I'm telling you, Moony, it was coming from the study."

"Padfoot, are you sure this isn't just wishful thinking?" Remus's steadily louder voice sounded distinctly amused. Hermione blinked. Wishful thinking? "I mean, after all - "

"I don't think so, but maybe - "

_Dear God, don't leave now!_ "HEY!" Hermione screeched quickly. "I _am_ bloody calling here, Remus! SIRIUS BLACK!

"Merlin's beard!" Remus sounded rather startled, and Hermione saw two pairs of legs hurry into the room, and the next second, they were both kneeling down in front of the fire and staring at her with expressions of surprise and concern. Hermione tried not to stare at Sirius, who looked even better than when she'd last seen him - he'd obviously been eating. "Hermione, where - ?"

"I'm impressed." Sirius chuckled. "You're supposed to be having class now, and here you are." his eyes shadowed briefly. "Is something wrong?"

She shrugged, but wasn't sure whether they caught the awkward movement, seeing as only her head was visible, wasn't it? "I don't know . . . maybe. I left class - Potions. With the new DADA teacher." She finished bitterly.

Remus smiled and Sirius made a face, a growling sound coming from his throat. "What did the git do?"

She hadn't intended to pour out all her concerns and fears and worries to them, hadn't meant to cause them any more concern for her, but she found herself pouring out all her weariness and anger and exasperation and woes to two very sympathetic ears, and they looked back at her, eyes full of concern when she was done.

" - And I'd had enough, so I walked out." She finished wearily. "Dumbledore could probably get me back into Snape's class, though, so that's not really what I'm worried about."

"Hey, it's all right, 'Mione," Remus said soothingly. "Things will get better, and Snape's always been like that, so there's really nothing to be afraid of from him."

Sirius appeared more inclined to be angry. "You're telling me the - " his language became unprintable and made Remus smirk " - actually said that you may have changed but you're not _so_ attractive that Ron should defend you?" he demanded. At her nod, he made a disbelieving noise. "Don't listen to him, 'Mione, he's probably started noticing you himself, and hates it."

"Yeah, right." Hermione snorted.

"I'm serious, I mean, what male hasn't - of course, Snape couldn't be considered quite normal," Sirius added reflectively, while Remus chuckled in the background at something that he was obviously finding funny - Hermione wondered what. She didn't have time to think about this, however, as Sirius continued ruthlessly: "I'm not quite sure I like the thought of him looking at you that way, but if he dares to come on to you in any way, tell me right away."

Hermione's eyebrows shot up, and she couldn't help but giggle. Sirius was awfully good for her morale, she had to admit. If only there was something behind his words . . .

"I think not, Sirius." She told him with a smile. "You'd be the last person I'd tell if Snape, in some alternate reality, was to 'come on to me', as you so delicately put it."

He grinned. "Why not?"

"Because, Padfoot, you'd probably _kill_ him, that's why." Remus informed with twinkling eyes. "So, Hermione, what about - ?"

He never got to finish the sentence, because at that moment a voice yelled _Alohomora_ and the door burst open. Hermione was almost afraid to pull her head out and she saw Sirius and Remus's expressions change - then, to her utter relief, she heard Harry yell: "Oh, thank heavens I found you! Are you talking to Sirius and Remus? Hermione, tell them to Apparate outside the grounds and get here right now!"

Hermione dutifully passed on the urgent message, her relief fading, and as Sirius and Remus disappeared from the study with loud _Crack!_s, she yanked her head out and coughing, leaped to her feet to face Harry.

"Where's Ron?"

"On the fourth floor deserted corridor."

Hermione allowed Harry to practically haul her out of the room, brandishing their wands, and towards the stairs. "What happened?" she asked, almost afraid to know. Voldemort couldn't have - ?

"Looks like trouble." Harry answered grimly.

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: Thank you so much! - to all the people who have reviewed so far. The reviews have really helped, and I honestly don't know how I'd write without all your encouragement! I hope you guys liked this chapter, and I'll update as soon as possible! 


	5. Chamber of Terror

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Five: Chamber of Terror   
  
*   
  
**   
  


Dumbledore and Ron were waiting on the fourth floor, near the Astronomy tower. Beside them was a large window, and they were both staring outside, Dumbledore gravely, Ron looking positively green with apprehension.

Hermione felt a swoop of fear as she and Harry raced down the corridor to join them.

"Sirius and Remus should be on their way into the grounds right now," she said quickly. "What's wrong?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Death Eaters. Two of three of them. They're in the Forbidden Forests and we must go there. I'll keep a watch for Sirius and Remus and take them in with me, otherwise they won't know where to go. And use the Scar-Location Charm you've learned this year, it will help."

Hermione squeezed Ron's arm reassuringly. "We'll go ahead and find them." She assured Dumbledore.

The three teenagers glanced at each other, exchanging a silent message of determination. This was their first task, their first chance to find the Death Eaters and discover Voldemort's location, or plans, as a team - as the _chosen_ team.

They nodded at Dumbledore. Harry leaped up onto the thick stone windowsill and took his Firebolt from Ron, who joined him. Hermione was going to take the ground.

"Harry!" Dumbledore spoke. "If you find them - they must be brought back alive."

Hermione turned around and raced down the corridor, summoning Nearly Headless Nick to take her down the quickest set of reliable stairways into the grounds. Once out, she glanced up and was reassured to see Harry and Ron swooping above her, their shadows oddly comforting against the sunlit ground.

She discarded her outer robes and ran full-fledged in the jeans and shirt she wore underneath, speeding as fast as she could towards the dark Forbidden Forests. Once she was inside, she heard the sound of broomsticks landing in the trees.

"This is a large area!" She yelled up to them. "We have a better chance of finding them if we split up and take different directions."

She could tell by the brief silence that neither Harry nor Ron liked the idea of her hunting Death Eaters down on her own. Then Ron yelled back: "All right, but send blue sparks up if you're in trouble. We'll find each other best that way."

After hearing that, Hermione agreed and took off into the trees. She wasn't sure how she was going to find the Death Eaters, and she slowed down. It would do to burst at them after they had heard her running footsteps or her voice. Then she remember what Dumbledore said about the Scar-Locating Charm, and closing her eyes, pictured the Dark Mark in her mind.

"_Solidate._" She murmured. Opening her eyes, a smoky version of the Dark Mark hovered thinly in front of her. _Not bad . . ._ she thought, and then pointed her wand at the wisp and whispered: "_Locate._"

The Dark Mark began to move, leading the way to the nearest living organism that was branded with the identical 'scar'. It was a clever spell, but she knew that the Death Eaters could use it to find Harry.

She hurried after the speedily moving wispy Mark, hoping that she wouldn't run into giant spiders or centaurs or the like. She was running when another Dark Mark appeared out of the trees at her side and collided (and merged) with hers.

Somebody had obviously thought they had found a Death Eater because a voice bellowed: "_Stupefy_"

Hermione ducked the jet of light and glowered at the approaching carrot-haired figure. "Ron, you prat, it's me!" she hissed angrily. "Do try not to Stun the members of your own pack."

"Blimey, sorry, 'Mione." He grinned sheepishly. There was a cut on his cheek, some thorn had obviously got to him. That was when Hermione realized she was in a similar state of disarray. However, what she next noticed was that the merged Dark Marks were speeding away, and with a glance at Ron, they raced after it.

They had been chasing the elusive Mark for about a moment or two when a clearing sprang into vision and a sort of cliffside. Embedded in the rock was what looked like a cave, its entrance covered in moss and hangings.

And standing outside were Dolohov, the Death Eater who had knocked Hermione unconcious at the Ministry, and none other than the famous Rodolphus Lestrange.

"Lestrange and Dolohov," Ron muttered as Hermione ground to a halt and stopped him as well. "Could we be any luckier, do you think?"

The two Death Eaters seemed to be thinking along the same lines, without the sarcasm, of course. "My, my," Lestrange drawled, his voice cold and cutting, "Granger and Weasely. Truly a pleasure, I must say, to meet such honorable members of Dumbledore's pitiful army. _Impedimenta!_"

Hermione cast the Shield Charm at the same moment, and Ron looked at the Death Eaters mockingly. "We're not members of the Order." Ron smirked, and Hermione cringed, knowing that he was about to blurt out what they actually were. "We're the Knight and the Angel. _Expelliarmus!_"

"_Reducto!_" Dolohov screeched and the jets of light hit each other mid-air and bounced off against the surrounding bark and rock. He growled and began to move sideways, like he was trying to corner them, Hermione thought with scorn.

"Knight and Angel?" Lestrange mocked, grinning a yellow, filthy smile. "Surely even amateur little school children like you too have outgrown famous nicknames? Or does Potter still overshadow you both to unbearability? Knight and Angel - of _what_"

"The Pack." Ron said quietly.

Hermione groaned. "_Ron!_" she hissed.

The expressions on the two Death Eaters' faces confirmed her suspicions. Voldemort had read the prophecy, probably recently, and the flicker of fear told her that they did indeed fear the power of the Pack. And now that they knew who two of the Pack were . . . they would stop at nothing to kill or capture them.

"The Pack . . ." Lestrange repeated softly. "The Pack. Well, well. The Dark Lord will reward me for this indeed!" He pointed his wand at Ron with deadly intent. "_Avada Ke - !_"

"_Protego!_" Hermione screamed before he could finish. The spell was deflected, and the green light hit the trees behind her harmlessly.

"You can't save yourself forever, Granger," Lestrange whispered dangerously. "Over and over I can scream the curse, and you cannot block my voice fore - "

"_Silencio!_" Ron bellowed. Lestrange's voice broke off and his mouth opened and closed in outraged silent rants. Hermione might have found it funny had they not been in such a dangerous situation; she remembered, after all, what Dolohov had done to her even without his voice . . . 

Dolohov, however, tugged his companion's arm. "We must inform the Master!" he yelled. "We must go and warn him of the Pack's identity, quickly!"

Lestrange glowered at them for one moment, then his thin lips curved into a mocking, cruel smile and he and Dolohov turned and disappeared into the cave in a flash, the vines and moss falling down to black any further entrance.

"We have to stop them!" Hermione cried. "They can't get to Voldemort and tell him! Come on!"

Before they could run, however, a voice yelled "_Impedimenta!_" in the trees behind them, followed by another yell of "_Protego!_", and then the beginnings of a "_Stupe - _" before a _Crack!_ cut the voice off and silence returned.

Hermione shot a nervous look at Ron. She was positive they'd just heard Harry, but what if he'd also let slip that he was the Leader of the Pack - another Death Eater might have already gotten back to Voldemort, Disapparated - 

Just then, Harry burst out of the trees, his face flushed from running. "I heard your shouts." He panted. "But Nott caught me on the way - he Disapparated - somehow - before I could stop - "

"You didn't tell him about the Pack, did you?" Ron asked, looking rather guilty. Harry shook his head, and Hermione felt a surge of relief. There was still time to get to Lestrange and Dolohov in the cave . . . oh where were Sirius, Remus and Dumbledore?

"Come on; we have to find those two." She murmured and hurried to the cave entrance. "_Reducto_." The vines and moss disintegrated. They hurried inside, and found themselves facing an empty room-like place with four narrow passages leading off in different directions. There was no sign of the Death Eaters. "Okay, so we take four of these - and yell if anyone runs into them; it should echo in here so we'll here each other."

It was agreed upon and they each took different passages and began to run. Hermione, in her urgency, didn't even register the fact that Dolohov and Lestrange had probably already Disapparated, and could possibly have intended to lead them into this chamber, into a trap . . .

And seconds after the three teenagers disappeared down their various passages, Sirius arrived at the entrance of the cave with Remus and Dumbledore close behind him. Remus and Sirius, being much younger and faster, decided to take two of the passages and race after the teenagers, while Dumbledore agreed to stay in the entrance cavern and wait for some sign of any Pack member or Death Eater.

  
***   


Ron found himself standing in a cavern that twinkled with forbidding, atificial fairy lights at the end of his tunnel. It seemed to be empty, but with the lights glowing unsteadily, it was hard to see completely clearly.

And then he saw it. The small dark shape on the floor. As he stared at it, horror-stricked, it began to grow, grow, grow . . . until it towered above him with eyes that bulged and gleamed menacingly, and pincers snapped horrifying, silky, sticky web shooting out from the glands.

A spider.

"Aargunh." the noise that escaped his throat was halfway between a yell and a choked moan. A spider . . . it couldn't be . . . it couldn't have chosen _this_ cavern of all - why him? A spider . . . it was going to kill him.

"_Stu - stupe - fy_." he croaked, but his voice was hoarse and breaking and the spell had no effect except to make the spider snap its pincers louder and inch towards him. He backed into the wall, cold sweat draining his body's moisture, fear pounding his heart into a pulp, and he looked into the spider's eyes in defeat.

And in those eyes he saw a face. It was Hermione, screaming in pain as she rolled over on the floor, under the terrible Cruciatus curse. The image changed - Sirius, bleeding and wounded as a dog, turning into a man, motionless. Remus - howling at the moon, eyes tortured, teeth bared, drool slobbering over him as he lay helpless . . . Harry, screaming in agony as a jet of deadly green light hit him - 

_This is not a real spider! I can fight this - I can run! I have to stop panicking, only then can I escape and find the others!_

He forced himself to glare at the spider, forced his hands to stop trembling, and pointed his wand steadily. "_Riddikulus!_" he yelled.

The spider stumbled, but it wasn't a Boggart. Ron stared, horrified. What was this creature, if it wasn't a Boggart? However, the stumble gave him the moment to see his escape route and with skill he must have picked up from playing Keeper, he dived to the floor, turned a completely somersault under the spider's legs, and raced out through the passage - through the way he'd come . . . 

  
*   


Harry raced down the passageway and spotted the sliver of light at the end of the tunnel. He exploded into the lit cavern, only to find eerily floating candles hovering around, and two shadowy figures standing in a dark corner.

His wand extended. "Lestrange?" he snapped. "Dolohov? Come out and duel like men, why don't you?"

The figures quivered, as if in laughter, and then they moved and slowly, painfully slowly, they stepped out into the light. Harry's wand fell to the floor as his hands dropped limply with his jaw.

A pretty redhaired woman with green eyes and a thin black-haired man with hazel eyes stared back at him. Only they looked rather different . . . rather pale . . . but solid. They were here! Like Sirius, they'd come back!

"M-Mum?" he choked softly. "_Dad?_"

They were silent, looking at him quietly. He stared at them, wondering why they weren't talking to him, and then, to his horror, he saw something flicker in their eyes. Something that looked horribly like disappointment.

"Oh Harry," his father murmured in an ethereal-like voice, "What's happened to the boy we thought would bring us joy? Why did you have to be born special, why did you have to be the one to defeat Voldemort? Why, Harry . . .?"

Harry stared, his palms feeling cold and clammy. Then his mother spoke, and her words were crueller than James's: "You brought us death, Harry, nothing but pain and death. _You_ killed us, Harry Potter, and now you're trying to fight like a hero? You're not a hero, Harry, you're a murderer. You murdered your own parents."

"No!" he gasped. "I didn't - I didn't want - I couldn't have - No! I didn't kill you, Mum! Don't say that; you loved me! Everyone says you both loved me, how can you say that I would ever kill you?" Tears were filling his eyes at the cold, hard look on their faces, pain was smothering his heart - 

"Loved you, Harry?" James scorned, laughing. "Loved _you_? Never, Harry, we were afraid of you . . . and we were right."

"We were right." Lily echoed softly.

Harry clutched his head. His parents would never say that, these weren't his parents - something - some demon was just playing on his guilt, playing on his pain, playing on the innermost demon that plagued him with the question: was it his fault that his parents died? _This cannot be real, Harry!_ He forced away the tears. _Your parents wanted you to live, they LOVED you! They gave their lives for you, you know that! These people are NOT your parents!_

The tears continued to fall and he continued to clutch his head, forcing the voices away. But he no longer knew whether they were tears of grief and guilt, or tears of relief because he'd finally faced his darkest fear - he'd finally accepted and realized that it wasn't his fault.

_This isn't real . . ._

  
*   


Remus stumbled and nearly fell to the floor. Regaining his balance, his turned around, wand aimed, to see what - or who - had forced him to trip.

He found himself looking at Ron. Ron was lying, sprawled on the floor, soaking in blood from what looked frighteningly like bite wounds. He was trying to sit up, struggling to breathe - and Remus felt cold fear grasp his heart.

"Ron!" he cried, hurrying towards the boy. "Ron, what happened? We came after - stay with me, Ron, don't give in!"

Ron's eyes flickered open, and Remus saw terrible fear enter his eyes. "_Get away from me, werewolf!_" he screamed. "You did this to me, you tried to kill me - get away from me!"

The words rang in Remus's ears, filling his mind and heart with cold, numb horror. The words were familiar, but they were more cruel, more angry, more pained this time - had he hurt Ron? Had he really attacked the boy?

Above Ron, he saw a shape form. The moon.

_No,_ Remus prayed.

And then, Ron disappeared, only to be replaced by Hermione. She was wounded and bitten like he had been, and she was sobbing. "Please, Remus, please - don't do this - don't kill me, Remus, please - "

"Hermione!" his voice was strangled. "I would never - I'd never do that - this can't be happening!"

Hermione changed, into Harry, groaning and staring at him with a terrible look of disbelief and betrayal in his eyes, bleeding, bleeding. Remus felt his kneess buckle and he fell to the floor. "How could I have done this?" he moaned. "I didn't! I know I would never hurt them!" . . . Harry became Sirius, a limp, gored dog, lying dead and motionless . . . "This wasn't me, this isn't real!"

He struggled to his feet. "You didn't do this, Moony," he told himself, his inner voice regaining his natural calm. "It wasn't you. Run, Moony, you have to run now."

And he ran, away from the screams of pain and the accusations because they were the one fear he could never get past and the one fear that he would die before he allowed it to realize.

  
*   


Hermione hurried towards the flashes of movement and shadow she could see in the opening at the end of the tunnel. Soon, she entered the cavern and stared around in astonishment at the sudden complete darkness she found herself in.

"_Lumos._" She muttered and a glow fell across the cavern. The beam of light illuminated a large object in the middle of the cavern and Hermione walked slowly towards it. It was a large bowl, filled with gleaming liquid. Curious, she bent towards the liquid and looked inside. A flurry of images suddenly appeared and they cleared and focused, and Hermione found herself staring at a sort of scene playing out inside.

With a start, she realized that _she_ was there, standing in the middle of a field. Then, other people slid into view. Harry, Ron and Remus were bundled a few feet away from her, tied tightly together with ropes. There was something writhing at her feet, something she was pointing her wand at.

"_Kill him . . . torture him . . . kill him . . ._" a voice whispered. Hermione felt a chill run down her spine. That voice wasn't hers . . . it was cold and terrifying - _Voldemort_. He was commanding her, telling her what to do - she was under the Imperius Curse, unable to fight it off and doing his bidding for him.

And what she was doing came into focus and Hermione felt cold, terrible sweat break out all over her body and she began to shake violently. Her wand was pointed at Sirius.

And the words escaping her lips were cold recitations of 'Crucio' and then - 'Avada Kadavra'.

"No!" Hermione screamed, backing away from the bowl. She had killed him! Unable to fight off Voldemort, she had tied her friends up and tortured and killed the man she loved! Did the bowl and its mysterious tell the future? Was that the future that lay in store for them?

_I couldn't . . . no . . . I can't kill him . . . I can't lose him . . . how could I do that . . . _ It had been her greatest, most deep fear ever since she had fallen in love with Sirius. She had always been terrified of losing her control over herself and doing something terrible . . . something unforgivable, that would break her heart forever . . . and she had done it.

Her body was shaking with violent tremors and she sank slowly to the floor, curling up against the wall. She tried to tell herself it wasn't real, that it couldn't be the future, that she was too strong to remain under the Imperius Curse, but the fear was too powerful, too deep, too great.

_Forgive me . . . _

  
*   


Sirius felt his heart pounding as he raced down the corridor. If the Death Eaters had gotten to the rest of the Pack, if something had happened to Hermione - 

_Whoa, where did that come from?_ He froze in the middle of a chamber that was illuminated by spooky lanterns and shadows. _Hermione? Why did I think of her first? Come to that, why can't I STOP thinking about her? My God . . ._

His thoughts had taken an abrupt turn as he saw the curled-up, shadowy shape on the floor. It wasn't moving, but lay there, still, like a rock. Only the rock had a very distinctive shape.

Sirius's throat closed up as he stumbled towards the shape and dropped to his knees beside it. Slowly, his hand shaking and his wand trembling violently, he reached out and felt the soft, smooth skin of a female arm, and he barely realized tears of fear and pain were stinging his eyes and he turned the shape around onto its back.

_Not her . . . please not her . . ._

Hermione lay spread-eagled on her back now, staring up at him with open, glassy, unseeing eyes. Her skin was cold and unmarked, but Sirius didn't have to find a pulse to know that she was dead. He was too late . . . too late . . .

"'Mione, don't do this, wake up!" he pleaded hoarsely, his voice breaking with grief. "Don't be dead, don't die on me! I need you, don't you understand? _I need you!_ Wake up, please!" He pointed his shaking wand at her. "_Enervate._" Nothing happened. His tears were falling now, snaking down his face in salty streams of pure anguish and grief. "Hermione, wake up, please, wake up for me! 'Mione, please! _I love you!_"

_Merlin's beard, I love her!_ he realised in shock, realizing it was completely true. _And - and she's dead . . . _ His chest ached with pain that was almost unbearable, something seemed to be shattering inside him. He was dying too . . . he couldn't live without her . . .

"Sirius!" the voice penetrated his numbed, fading mind and his eyes opened to see Remus and Ron, crouching beside him. "It's the chamber, Sirius, it's a chamber of fear, of terror! What you're seeing, it's not real! Hermione's not dead, we still have to find her - and Harry! Sirius, snap out of it!"

Finally, he heard the voice and he forced himself to understand. The tears dried on his face and he looked up to find two pairs of concerned eyes looking at him. Hermione's dead body was nowhere in sight. Pleasure and relief like nothing he'd ever known washed over him.

He climbed to his feet, and clenched his jaw. "Then let's find them."

  
***   


Hermione forced herself to stop crying, to stop the sobs. She couldn't go on like this, what if one of them found her and tried to take her back? Then she'd go on fighting, and she'd end up killing - 

She swallowed hard and stood up, tears still leaking out of her pain-filled eyes. She brushed them angrily away and retrieved her fallen wand. It was time to prevent the horror of killing them, it was time to make a sacrifice, just like they'd always made sacrifices for her . . .

It was time to end this.

"_Avada - _" she croaked, her hands trembling as she pointed the wand at herself. "_Avada Kada - Ava - oh God - Avada - _"

"Hermione, no!"

That male voice, strong and intense, pierced her heart like an arrow. He was here - if she didn't do this soon - she'd kill him! She had to do it!

But something was preventing her. His hand, capable of setting her body aflame, closed around her wrist and the other gently tugged her wand away. "It's not real, Mione," he whispered huskily, holding her close to him and letting the safe warmth of his body hold her, fade away her fears, give her hope . . . "Nothing you saw is real. I'm here for you, and none of us are going anywhere."

"I'll - I'll hurt you," she whispered brokenly, looking up at him.

"Never," he growled. "You'd never do that, you have to have faith in the purity of your heart. You'd _never_ hurt us, and I'm not going to let you think so. It's all a nightmare; a chamber that preys on our deepest fears. Dolohov and Lestrange led us here, hoping to drive us mad and get us to kill each other - or ourselves - and reduce Dumbledore's army's strength. But it hasn't worked. Harry's with Ron and Remus, and they're fine."

Hermione looked at him, a seedling of delight sprouting inside her. "Everyone's okay?" she asked softly, letting him hand her back her wand and gently lead her back to the passageway.

He stopped walking for a moment and turned to her. With a slight smile, he kissed her on the forehead. "Everyone's fine." he promised. "And we always will be."

And in that moment, as they walked together and joined the rest of the Pack, Hermione found her hope and the strength to quell her demons in truly believing him.

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: Wow, long chapter, I think. More soon (as soon as is humanly possible for someone juggling 10th-grade exams, homework, etc), and please review and give me your much-appreciated feedback. Enjoy the story! 


	6. Fire and Ice

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Six: Fire and Ice   
  
*   
  
**   
  


Once back in Dumbledore's office, with everyone suitably calmed down and reassured about those deep terrors, Harry had a very reasonably question to ask.

"How did they Disapparate?" He demanded of Dumbledore. "We followed them in because we thought they couldn't escape from us so easily. I thought its impossible to Apparate or Disapparate within Hogwarts?"

"I believe we had gone so deep into the forest that we were technically out of Hogwarts grounds and therefore out of the magical protection it bears." Dumbledore responded thoughtfully. "I must congratulate you all, however. You fought and accepted your deepest shadows admirably, and I can see that the prophecies did not make foolish choices."

Hermione shifted slightly in her seat. Her experience wasn't going to be forgotten any time soon . . . and she could see from the faces of the others that they had had equally horrible moments. But they had gotten through them . . . together.

"Voldemort will know by now that Hermione, Harry and I are members of the Pack," Ron mumbled now. There was some surprise on Sirius and Remus's faces. "I let it slip to Dolohov and Lestrange while we were duelling."

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "Then I'm afraid you and Hermione won't be very safe, even at Hogwarts, Ron," he said quietly.

"Then what do we do?" Remus asked. "We can't risk them any more than they already are."

Sirius nodded, but Hermione noticed that he looked slightly shell-shocked, and his eyes held a certain faraway, wistful yet bitter look that she couldn't comprehend.

"Quite right, Remus. Perhaps it would be best if you three - " Dumbledore looked at the three teenagers and Hermione wondered what he was about to say. " - spent the next few weeks, until after Christmas, perhaps, at Grimmauld Place with Sirius and Remus. Harry, you will, of course, have to continually Apparate outside the grounds to come for Quidditch practice and matches - and I shall get your schoolwork to you each day without fail and your assignments can be submitted through me. Apart from assistance from the two young men here, Hermione, you are more than qualified to take on the temporary role of a professor."

Hermione blushed and tried not to look too ecstatic at the thought of going to Grimmauld Place and staying there, as much as she loved Hogwarts. She allowed a grin to seep through, however, as her companions seemed to be openly displaying their delight.

"I'm glad that meets with your approval." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled and he winked at Hermione. "I shall announce to the teachers at once, and personally escort you five to the gates of the grounds, where you can Disapparate back to the doors of Grimmauld Place."

  
***   


Ten days later, Hermione fell asleep at three in the morning finishing a nasty Defense Against the Dark Arts essay (apparently, Snape wasn't at all pleased - firstly that Sirius was alive and doing his best to antagonize Snape - and that his three favorite tormentees were no longer in his classes), and stumbled in late to breakfast with her hair up magically in a slippery knot and her robe tied loosely at the waist, exposing the top of her short and silky baby doll night'dress'.

"I won't ask." Ron said with a teasing grin, looking at her closely. "Was it - no, I'm not going to ask."

"Wise move." She muttered, pouring out a mug of Butterbeer and leaning back against the kitchen counter. Harry was scribbling at a Transfiguration assignment, Ron was still halfway through a slice of toast with a 'Mad Muggle' comic open in front of him, and Remus was sleepily reading a book called 'Famous Defensive Blunders and their Effects'. Sirius, she noticed, was nowhere in sight and it was probably just as well.

He'd been unaccountably tender in the Chamber of Terror, but since then, something seemed to have happened to make him rather distant and sometimes even _stony_ and downright cold with her. She simply didn't understand it, and she covered up her hurt with an aloof attitude of indifference and sometimes, she had to admit, she was downright snappish.

Swallowing a large mouthful of Butterbeer, she located her S.P.E.W notes on the counter behind her and picked them up, deciding now was as good a time as any to bring the subject up with Remus and ask him what he thought about her new campaign.

He appeared interested, and as they begun talking, Hermione found the animation and earnestness that had once been in her voice and heart regarding that issue, was fading. And she had a good suspicion as to why.

She just couldn't bear it; being around him all the time and seeing him there, so sure and sexy, his body moving with subtle, but definite, strength and muscle, laughing with the others or grinning at something with a bit of hair flopping in his eyes . . .

_FORGET him, damn it, 'Mione._

Typically, he chose that moment to walk into the room, and also typically, the first thing his eyes fell on were the sheaf of paper's in Hermione's hand as she leaned against the counter, and the single sheet in Remus's. Then his eyes raked over her.

"Nice nightgown." He said, his voice low and gravelly.

Hermione nearly choked on a mouthful of Butterbeer, and she gathered enough composure to shoot the Marauder a frosty glare. He smirked and looked at Remus.

"S.P.E.W?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

Ron snorted. "Yeah, 'Mione's now trying to win over Remus with some Diagon Alley-recruitmen progra - " Hermione glared at Ron, and he finally seemed to notice. "_Ah_, sorry, 'Mione, it's just a little - well - _old_ - don't ya think?"

"No, I don't." Hermione snapped.

Harry glanced up from his parchment. "Don't you two start now," he begged, grinning. "At least let me finish this essay so that I can get out of here, and then you can begin."

They glared at him.

"Moony, don't you think you're a little old for campaigns like S.P.E.W?" Sirius asked, to his credit, in a mild tone.

Hermione's jaw dropped. Since when did he indirectly mock her efforts with S.P.E.W? Or was she simply being over-sensitive?

"I think she has a point," Remus shrugged.

"Are you accusing me of being childish?" Hermione demanded, directing her glare towards Sirius, who turned to her. His gaze sweeped her from head to toe with that sexy slowness, and it only made her more indignant. Finally, he met her eyes.

He shrugged. "I didn't say that. I just think you're being a little - unrealistic. How many people do you know who'll agree that house-elves deserve equal rights, other than Dumbledore? It's just not the way things are done."

"Only because the magical world is so self-involved that they can't see anything beyond what they've always done and known!" Now the passion was coming back. "House-elves have feelings and dreams and emotions too - just like humans - and it just isn't fair to keep them in cruel captivity like Dobby used to be - "

"And like Kreacher?" Sirius asked quietly, crossing his arms over his Muggle clothing-clad, white-T-shirted chest.

The other three occupants of the room were watching with a mixture of awe and amusement. Hermione flinched at Sirius's words. "Like humans, some house-elves deserve to be condemned and to rot in the fires of hell," she said in a hard voice, so that he wouldn't detect the extreme emotion behind it. "But I'm talking about them as a general population, a race."

"Look, your theory about the magical world only seeing inside their own box doesn't exactly hold up," he countered, shaking his head. "What about the Muggles too, eh? They have maids and cooks and those butler thingies - "

"Whom are all paid and given holidays and not treated like personal slaves!"

"But there has been slavery in the Muggle world, now, hasn't there? Or did my Muggle Studies class teach me wrong?" He seemed to be mocking her, an odd light in his eyes that she couldn't read. "And unlike our treatment of house-elves, Muggle slavery was cruel bondage."

Hermione seethed. "That changed. Why can't this change as well?" she demanded angrily, her voice growing colder now. "You were a Marauder, and people say you were a rebel. Yet you seem just as fixated as the rest of the magical world in believing that there's a certain way that things have to be, and that's the way they should stay. You won't even imagine - or dream - of possibilities that aren't _supposed to be!_"

"Maybe because dreaming of those possibilities only lead you to reach for unattainable stars and lead to you getting hurt." He growled with such powerful, quiet emotion that she was startled, and she could see Ron's eyes widening out of the corner of her eye. Sirius shook his head. "I change my mind: you _are_ being childish. But then again, you are a child."

Her blood pressure began to rise. Why was he suddenly so bitterly fixated on the fact that she was 'a child'. And she wasn't!

"Childish, am I?" She snapped. "Well, forget thinking out of the box in regard to house-elves. What about simple prejudice, simple oppression and 'racism' per say?"

Sirius shrugged. "What about it? It can't be _that_ intolerable."

"Well, I shouldn't expect much more from a pureblood," Hermione said in frigid tones of ice, straightening up and placing the papers back on the counter with dangerous care. "But speaking as someone _your_ kind enjoy calling a Mudblood, I think I can safely inform you of the fact that magical prejudice and racism can quickly become intolerable."

Something flickered in Sirius's eyes, but Hermione didn't wait to see what it was. Slowly, she turned on her heel and left the room before the tears stinging her eyes threatened to spill out.

  
***   


"Hermione?" There was another persistent knock on her bedroom door. "'Mione, please, open up! I need to talk to you!"

She groaned, and hauled herself up off the bed. "Go away, Sirius, I don't feel like talking." she snapped loudly.

"Don't make me use magic, 'Mione!"

"Hah." She snorted and glared at the door. She received the shock of her life when she heard Sirius's voice mutter _Alohomora_ and the door clicked open. He marched in (the prat! she thought indignantly) and closed the door behind him.

Thank Merlin she had changed out of her nightclothes! And had completed the process of changing as well!

"What do you want?" she asked coolly, crossing her arms defensively across her chest.

"I wanted to tell you I'm sorry." He said quietly, tossing his wand onto the bed near hers, and walking towards her. He shrugged. "I don't think I can explain _how_ sorry I am for what I said - I didn't mean any of it - you know I - " he sighed and raked a hand through his hair in frustration, lifting guilty eyes to hers. " - I'm sorry." he repeated.

She was floored. Sirius Black - _apologizing?_ Since when?

"Say something." He pleaded, looking like he'd just broken her head open with a misplaced hex. "I really am sorry, I can't hang around knowing you're angry with me . . . forgive me?"

His eyes were so melting, and so plain darn sexy, that she was having a hard time focusing on his words. She swallowed and forced a slight shrug. "It just hurt a little, that's all. I thought you - of all people - would understand what prejudice is like. I mean, people judge you all the time because you're a Black."

"Don't I know it?" he muttered bitterly. He was pacing the room slowly, and she walked over towards the wall to let Hedwig in through the window. "I honestly didn't mean a word of what I said to you - I was just looking to provoke, to get angry - "

"Why?" she asked softly. "You've been acting a little odd all week. Is it about Voldemort?"

"If only it was," he sighed heavily as he drew nearer to her and looked like he was fighting back something strong. "But it isn't - fortunately, or unfortunately."

She looked up at him closely. "Then why are you so frustrated, Sirius?"

He uttered something under his breath that sounded like the inaudible mixture of swear words and a reply. She raised her eyebrows. "Pardon me? What was that?"

"Because all I want to do right now is kiss you and I can't." He growled out, clenching his jaw angrily. Hermione felt her insides freeze in shock - and amazement - and numbly, she registered the muscle jerking in his jaw, the angry, frustrated muscle . . .

Slowly, she lifted her hand to trace his upper arm gently. "Who says you can't?" She asked softly, backing into the wall and almost magnetically leading him with her. "Definitely not me, I'll tell you that."

"You might regret this." He warned, that slow smile beginning to curve his mouth.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you won't?"

That seemed to do it. He took a step closer and before she knew it, his mouth was on hers and she was kissing him back, her arms moving up to his shoulders and his neck. Her heart was hammering so hard and so loudly, and she could feel the racing of his own through the thin cotton on his chest. This was ecstasy . . . this was passion . . . this was fire.

She broke the kiss and began kissing his neck and nibbling gently on the warm, throbbing flesh between his ear and his collar. His mouth, warm and soft, was in her hair, sending tingles of flame through her brain and downwards. As she kissed along his jaw line with its shadow of razor stubble (she hadn't known wizards used normal shaving stuff), he slid a hand under her shirt and moved up her stomach, and he moaned.

As he lowered his head to kiss her again, she tightened her arms around his neck and kissed him hard and sweetly. He was on fire, his nerves and body coming alive with the kind of feeling he'd never felt before and never dreamed he could feel. Every touch, every millimeter of her skin brushing against his sent sparks and spirals of heat and tenderness through his entire body, and he knew he could stay here . . . with her . . . forever.

Suddenly, the knocking on the door finally penetrated his numbed consciousness and Hermione broke away gently at the same time. "Damn." He muttered angrily, an erasable smile on his mouth nonetheless.

She smiled up at him. "I take it you don't regret it." She murmured, glancing at the door and feeling slightly irritated. It would be typical of Ron to have the worst possible timing in the world . . . Sirius grinned at her, and the smile made her knees feel weak all over again. Slowly, he disentangled his arms and hands from her body and lowered his head to kiss her softly, tenderly, in the hollow at the base of her throat. She almost collapsed from the jelly that her legs turned to - no wand magic required, but this _was_ magic.

"No way in hell." He responded huskily, before turning around and with a wink at her, walked towards the door. His pace gave her a moment to straighten her clothes and make some attempt to do the same to her hair, but she was smiling. At least she knew he cared. And even if he wasn't in love with her, she knew he did want her - and that was something.

Of course, it _was_ indeed Ron, standing on the other side of the door and Hermione and Sirius looked at him with identical expressions of expectation.

He was grinning broadly, and appeared to be fighting back laughter. "Uh - sorry to - er - interrupt - but Remus - rather reluctantly, I might add - suggested - that I call you two down for - er - lunch. Harry would also like to add that - he assures you that - you can take your - er - time."

Sirius hid his smirk. "We'll go down with you," He replied smilingly, "And you can - er - assure Remus and Harry that you weren't - er - interrupting."

Hermione giggled at Ron's face turning beet red. He bolted for the stairs, and Sirius chuckled as they both followed at a more reasonable pace. "Well, they _suspect_, of course," he shrugged, "And Remus probably dropped hints anyway. But I doubt any of them are certain of anything."

"I agree." Hermione actually hoped they weren't certain of anything. For a little while, some 'forbidden' secrets were worth keeping.

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: I think this chapter is rather shorter, but I'm not exactly great at writing kissing scenes . . . anyway, hope you guys are enjoying the story as it goes on, and please keep reviewing, I really appreciate your feedback. Thanks! 


	7. At the Rising of the Moon

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way.   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Seven: At the Rising of the Moon   
  
*   
  
**   
  


On the following evening, while attempting to teach Harry and Ron the correct way to work the Invisibility Charm (why Harry would ever need the Charm with his cloak around was a point he brought up frequently simply to annoy Hermione, she was certain), the Pack came upon another prophecy.

Hermione was repeating, for about the fiftieth time that house, that the wand movement was a swish and a jab, not a point-blank jab that was mean to poke people's eyes out.

"Why not?" Ron demanded. "Both achieve the same effect; the charm will make you invisible, but the jabbing move will do the same thing because you'll be blinding your bloody opponent."

Harry roared with laughter, and Hermione found herself torn between amusement and disapproval. "Look, Ron, we're going to need it for the NEWT exams, and you can hardly blind a poor examiner like old Professor Tofty who took our OWLs, so you might as well do me a favor and _learn_ the damned charm!"

"Might as well get it over with, Ron," Harry, who had just gotten the hang of the charm, pointed out reasonably, winking at Hermione who huffed in exasperation. "Then we can all have some lunch and then I have Quidditch practice to attend in the evening so I need rest."

"Dear me." Hermione snorted.

Ron grunted. "Oh all right," he picked up his wand from the table and swished and jabbed and muttered: "_Invisego_."

Unfortunately, he'd picked his wand up the wrong way around (as only Ron was capable of, Hermione thought with an inward groan) and the jet of light burst from his wand, which was supposed to be pointing at him, and hit the bookshelf on the opposite side of the room. The Charm, (thankfully) was not designed for inanimate objects, but the bookshelf, much to their horror, shook violently.

Harry and Ron raced forward to thrust the shelf back against the wall safely, but not before a couple of books felt out. Hermione sighed heavily. "Oh well." She shrugged and picked up the books. As she put them back, one of the much older, dustier volumes in her hand shook and a piece of faded old parchment fell out. She thrust the book back and picked up the parchment curiously.

"What is it? A letter?"

"I don't think so," Hermione stared at the sheet in shock. "In fact, if I'm not mistaken, this is another prophecy - written in Mermish."

Harry groaned despairingly. "I'm beginning to regret ever agreeing to study today." He muttered, eyeing the parchment with misgiving. "At least tell me you can read Mermish, 'Mione, so that we're not swamped in suspense and confusion like before!"

"Yeah," Hermione muttered distractedly, barely hearing him. "You and Ron better send Hedwig to summon Sirius and Remus from Diagon Alley right away; I'll translate this."

It wasn't exactly easy, Mermish not being one of her specialities, but it was infinitely quicker than translating Runes resemblances, and by the time the two teenage boys returned after sending Hedwig off with a hasty note, there was more or less a finished, much shorter, prophecy lying on the table.

Ron snatched it and began to read, and finally lowered it to the table again, looking rather perplexed. Hermione sighed; he was truly hopeless, and she and Harry bent over the parchment once more.

  


_The Lunar Premonition  
  
In the year of the serpent, when its enemies wake,  
The time to act will be foretold,  
When fortresses crack and bonds break,  
When golds turns to rust and rust to gold,  
There shall come the beast, the hunter of a pack,  
One with power unhindered and raw,  
To seek, of the serpent, the chinks and the crack,  
To hunt down the minions of the empowered law.  
This shall be the time, the time to act  
And the hunter shall be born on that night.  
If the fortress has cracked, the time is soon;  
It shall come at the rising of the moon._

  


"Tell me something," Harry spoke up once they were through reading the mystical prophecy. "Is everything that happens to us fate? Were were _meant_ to find this prophecy?"

"Somewhere," Hermione replied, surprised at her own logical mind thinking this way, "Everything does come down to fate. That's why prophecies exist at all, isn't it?"

Harry sat down. "And what do we make of this?"

"Maybe we should wait till Remus and Sirius get back." Ron suggested.

Hermione shrugged. "Okay, I agree that we should go about this as a pack, but I think I have a pretty good idea of what this prophecy means."

Of course, that made Ron and Harry instantly desperate to know what she thought, but she smirked and remained silent, reminding them that they were going to wait until the two men returned. At that thought, Hermione's mind drifted back to Sirius and the previous morning and she felt the ache in her body and heart again and the tingles spread through her limbs. She gulped and glared at the table. It was time to concentrate.

They returned within moments, bursting into the house, arousing furious shrieks from Mrs. Black, which they pointedly ignored by slamming the study door shut, and flopping down at the table.

"What happened?" Sirius gasped, panting. Obviously, they'd run a way before Disapparating. "We got Hedwig's note - rather urgent, I might add - "

"A prophecy." Hermione stated calmly, trying not to look at him for too long at a time. She pushed the parchment towards Remus, closely observing their - and Remus's in particular - reactions. "I think you might be interested in this one."

They read it in silence and then Sirius looked up. "Well, it connects very strongly to the other one, and it's pretty clear what it means, I suppose."

"But is there a serpent in the Chinese calendar?" Ron asked, frowning.

"I don't think that's what this refers to, not like the year of the dragon." Hermione shook her head. "I think 'year of the serpent' refers to the time when Voldemort grows extremely strong - like, now. And 'when its enemies wake' could pinpoint this time in particular, where Dumbledore and the Order are growing and the Pack has awoken and realized its purpose and task."

"Yeah!" Harry agreed, nodding. "Then this prophecy is sort of telling us when the time to make our move will be or something, right? But what's all this gold to rust stuff?"

Sirius shrugged. "Maybe it means things are being turned upside-down in the world." he suggested.

"That would certainly fit," Ron scowled. "Like Percy betraying us for the Ministry, the Ministry trying to take us - the good guys - down like they did not too long ago, and whatnot."

"Yes, I think Sirius is right about that," Remus nodded. "But 'when fortresses crack and bonds break'? I can't make much of that."

"Bonds break . . ." Hermione murmured, thinking hard. What had Ron just said? About Percy? "Maybe," she said tentatively, trying not to look at Sirius as he glanced at her, "'Bonds break' indicates a time where allies and enemies are unexpected, like when, as Ron said, Percy unexpectedly turned on Dumbledore and us."

"So this is certainly _this_ time," Harry pointed out, "But it's not getting any more specific, is it, unless we can figure out 'fortresses crack'?"

"Well, next details _who_ will begin our attack," Hermione continued. "The Hunter."

"Me." Remus sighed and Sirius slapped him on the shoulder encouragingly.

Hermione nodded. "Exactly. And it says 'hunt down the minions of the empowered law'. The minions could obviously mean the Death Eaters, which means on this particular night - because night is mentioned later on - Remus will hunt down and take out some of the Death Eaters, giving us better access to Voldemort. 'Empowered law' might mean Voldemort, of course, because he has come to power."

"Where do you learn to do this kind of analysis?" Ron demanded, obviously in awe, awe that was not wholly free of disapproval.

"Oh honestly, Ron, don't you _read?_"

"What's the point; you've always, always read it first."

The others chuckled, but Sirius hastily straightened his face when Hermione shot him a look, but his lips twitched and he winked at her, making a blush rise to her cheeks and she hurriedly looked back down at the prophecy.

"Hang on, it says here 'the hunter shall be born on that night'." Harry read. "_Born?_ Remus is already born, and lived three decades, mind you. Or does this mean, the 'hunter' part of Remus will awaken on that night?"

"Yeah, because read on further . . ." Sirius pointed out, "It says 'the time is soon; It shall come _at the rising of the moon_'. Moony's going to be a werewolf when he begins the attack on the Death Eaters!"

Hermione glanced quickly at Remus and saw his expression flicker and for the first time in her life, she saw real fear shadow his eyes and a sort of helpless denial. He stood up and began to pace the room slowly, his expression deeply troubled.

"Remus?" Ron asked tentatively. "What's up, mate?"

Sirius looked at the table. He obviously already knew what was wrong, judging from the concerned glances he threw his best friend.

Remus sighed and said quietly, "In the Chamber of Terror, I stumbled into the cavern and tripped over something. It was you, Ron, and you were lying there, bleeding from bite marks - werewolf bite marks. The moon was hovering above you, and you were screaming at me to get away from you. I'd been the one to bite you. And then you changed to Hermione . . . who sobbed and begged me not to kill her . . . to Sirius, as a dog, wounded and mangled and dead . . . it was - is - my deepest, greatest fear. That I might hurt one of you, kill someone . . ."

"Remus," Hermione said quietly. "You would never do that; you may not be in control while you're a werewolf, but you have to realize that we'd never let you hurt us and that the bonds between us are too strong - so strong that even the mind of a werewolf will sense them."

"I told you, Moony," Sirius smiled and Hermione felt a surge of gladness as relief crossed over Remus's features at Harry and Ron's emphatic agreement. "Besides, do you think I'd let any werewolf come near them as a dog?"

"Thanks." Remus looked around at them all, and he sat back down. "This means - a lot. So," he coughed, obviously trying to clear the emotion out of his voice, but it stayed in his eyes, "Let's get back to the prophecy."

Harry huffed. "We need the more precise time, because full moons rise pretty often, if I may mention, and we can't exactly _not_ give Remus the Wolfsbane Potion every time the moon rises, because that's just unnecessary torture to him."

Sirius nodded. "Maybe this fortress part will help," he suggested, shrugging.

"'When fortresses crack'," Hermione read out loud, frowning thoughtfully. Fortresses . . . what could classify as a fortress? A place of safety, a sanctuary . . . what was the sanctuary they knew? . . . and then it hit her. Hogwarts was the place of safety they knew, and since the Death Eaters in the Forest, it wasn't quite so safe for _them_.

"Hogwarts." she told them, smiling slightly. "It's talking about a sanctuary of sorts, and that's what Hogwarts is. And lately, it hasn't been so safe - 'when fortresses _crack_."

"Brilliant!" Ron croaked hoarsely.

Remus frowned slightly. "But that means it's already happened, and that means . . . the time has come. Which also means - "

"That we have to find out where Voldemort is before the next full moon." Sirius stated.

Harry checked the lunar calendar on the desk and looked up at them all rather apprehensively. "Six days." he mumbled. "Six days to find Voldemort and get nearby so that Remus morphs there."

"Never thought our battle would come so soon." Ron said quietly, and uneasily.

They all looked at each other. "We'll fight," Hermione said softly. "And we'll finish this. But right now, it's time to start hunting down Voldemort's location."

"Nope," Sirius countered, shaking his head playfully and standing up. "Right now, it's time for lunch."

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: Chapter Eight coming soon! I'm so psyched about all the reviews and encouragement; it's really helping so keep going! Enjoy! 


	8. Angelic Stars

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way. And I definitely own the two prophecies!   
  
Note: Some rather R-rated material in this chapter, I think, so readers who object: well, I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do. You could skip the chapter if you like (although I doubt anyone really objects to a somewhat love scene).   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Eight: Angelic Stars   
  
*   
  
**   
  


Hermione couldn't sleep. Two days after finding the Lunar Premonition, they were still no closer to discovering Voldemort's whereabouts, even with Dumbledore's help, and time was ticking away. However, that wasn't what was keeping her awake at close to midnight after a _long_ day, although it was certainly a burden.

Sirius was the 'criminal', of course. Thinking about him, needing him, was driving her crazy and even if love wasn't part of their bargain - which was hard for her, of course - she wanted him like she'd never wanted anyone in her life. And she wasn't about to fall asleep any time soon without - well, she didn't exactly know what the _with_ was.

_This isn't getting you anywhere, and if you don't get some sleep, you're not going to be very productive tomorrow in your research, and you're not going to get any sleep any time soon unless . . ._

Unless.

"Aaargh." Hermione groaned, frustrated. She flung off the quilts and climbed out of bed, marching straight for the door and stepping out into the dimly lit corridor. The empty spaces on the wall, where Black portraits once stood, seemed starkly pale against the gloomy backgrounds and she felt oddly like a ghostly fugitive traipsing these forbidden hallways.

_Well, love certainly made you more dramatic!_ Her mouth twisted in self-mockery. She was slowly becoming disgraceful, in her strong opinion.

She came to a halt outside a door that was half open, light spilling out into the corridor. Her bare feet tingled against the floor, but she forced herself to regain some form of control and stepped into the doorway, leaning slightly against the doorframe with her arms folded. Her breath caught in her throat.

He was sitting on his bed, leaning back against the headboard with his legs splayed, one knee bent, in front of him and a book leaning against that knee. His eyes didn't look particularly tired and bored, but had a thin film over them that told her he was suffering from lack of concentration problems as well. Also, most noticeable, was the fact that he was shirtless and his lightly tanned skin and hard stomach below his chest was something she hadn't expected to see.

"Four days," she spoke up quietly, trying to focus on a part of his body that didn't threaten to melt her down. His chin . . . no, too close to the jaw, and the mouth . . . his forehead?

He looked up, obviously surprised and the film disappeared from his eyes. "Hi," he greeted her in a low voice. He nodded, his eyes darkening. "I know. We'll find him. This battle will be finished soon . . . and sooner or later, a sign of Voldemort's location will come."

"I just hope it's sooner rather than later." She sighed.

"You worry too much," he smiled. "Leave that to Molly; she's an expert. Besides, you're too young to worry so much about things, even Harry and Ron aren't so worked up."

"Because they have the utmost belief that 'Hermione will figure it out'." she said sardonically. "They seem to think my 'superior knowledge', as Ron loves to jab, will come through no matter what."

He shrugged. "Maybe they're right. I'm beginning to think you're an _angel_ of many talents." His voice was faintly suggestive and his eyes burned with desire that Hermione knew mirrored her own. She felt the blush creep to her face and gulped.

"So . . . are you busy?" She managed to ask, in as level a voice as she could manage. Unfortunately, it came out sounding more like a frog than she might have liked.

He dropped the book, securely shut, on the bed and grinned slowly at her. Her heart began to speed up. "Not as busy as I might've hoped," he confessed regretfully. "But then again, right now, busy isn't something I want to be." He lowered his voice slightly. "Can't seem to focus."

"What's distracting you?" She asked, straightening up and walking slowly towards him. He watched her with an intense gaze that made every cell in her body alert and fiery (_Damn the baby doll clothes!_), but she kept her cool as she approached the bed and sat down, her back millimeters from his body.

She turned her head to look at him and he smiled, but she saw that he didn't appear as much in control as before. In fact, she watched as he swallowed hard, a frustrated muscle jerking in his jaw. "Do you really want to know what's distracting me?" he asked quietly, reaching out almost subconsciously towards her. His touch burned through the thin fabric and he absently traced patterns against her stomach.

"I couldn't sleep." She mumbled, her voice shaking slightly. "And I wanted - "

Perhaps he was a Leglimens, or maybe it was written in her eyes, because before she could speak out what she'd wanted, he was kissing her and every worry, every frustration, every shred of anger from the day dissolved into a pool of bliss as she turned towards him and kissed back, harder, passionately, needingly.

His lips broke away from hers and began to trace a path of soft kisses and gentle nibbling to her ear, sucking on her earlobe, and moving down her neck. At the same time, his shifted positions effortlessly, so that when she began to lick the thin sheen of salty sweat lining his bare shoulders, he was sort of above her, and sort of on his side, so than none of his weight was entirely on her. His breathing became ragged and unsteady as she kissed lower on his chest and then he slid lower and kissed her softly first, so that she could taste his mouth and he could taste hers.

And as his hands brushed her thigh, his tongue licked along her lips so that they parted slightly and he slid his tongue into her mouth. She thought her pulse and heart were going to explode from the speed they were racing, matched only by his own, and as he stroked the hollows of her tongue and mouth with his, she felt a shiver run down her spine and one warm, strong arm slid under her to draw them closer together.

"I shouldn't be doing this," he murmured raggedly as she traced her fingers lightly across his chest, kissing the desire in the perspiration lining his skin. "You're so young, Harry would kill - "

"Harry and Ron would only find it amusing and they and Remus would leap at the chance to tease us," Hermione whispered against his hair as his roving, soft mouth moved to her neck and began nibbling and licking lower to her collarbone. "Besides, I'm of age, no one can tell me what to do anymore - so technically, what we're doing, is perfectly all right."

He chuckled against her collarbone, the vibrations sending sparks shooting throughout her already trembling body. "It sure as hell feels better than 'all right'."

She laughed, but in her position, it came out as a soft, seductive sound and his sharp intake of breath told her the effect had worked. It was her turn to stop breathing and feel the tremendous flames as his lips reached top of her nightie, where the dip between her more womanly attributes was visible, and he kissed along the edge of the fabric, sending her body into tremors that he steadied and calmed just by the fiery hot touch of his arms and hands holding her securely.

"Sirius . . ." She moaned.

His voice was hoarse and unsteady. "God, 'Mione, don't say my name like that or I might lose all control whatsoever. This . . . you and me . . . it works."

"_That's_ certainly an understatement." She smiled. He wasn't going to go any further; not yet, and as much as they both wanted to, she couldn't help but feel a surge of ecstasy at that. He did care.

He pulled back slightly, hands now on either side of her body, and looked into her eyes. She felt like she might drown in the intensity and tenderness in those deep, coffee depths, and his slowly moved one hand to trace her moist lips with his thumb; his hands were trembling slightly and his body sexily sheened with sweat.

He gave her that slow, heart-stoppingly sexy grin and then bent back down to kiss her, and she returned it with equal longing, love pouring out of every one of her cells, wishing he felt it too. The kiss turned soft and gentle and then he kissed her on the forehead, both of them breathless. She slowly sat up and put her arms around him, hugging him tightly, resting her head against the warm safety of his damp shoulder. He hugged her back, with equal fervour, and she couldn't help thinking . . . 

"Hell," he chuckled softly, but his tone told her he meant it. "I could get addicted to this."

She smiled, feeling his heart beat hard under her fingers. That was _exactly_ what she'd been thinking.

  
***   


"You're up early." Ron teased when Hermione walked into the kitchen at eight o' clock the next morning, having slept _incredibly_ well, safely held in Sirius's arms with his heartbeat below her head. "Usually you work so late, you're only in time for lunch."

"I took a bit of a break last night." Hermione said, certain she deserved a Muggle Academy Award for not blushing, especially since Sirius was at the table as well, watching her intensely. She looked at Remus. "We don't have too much time."

He nodded, lowering the research book he was reading. "I know, but I think we could all do with a couple of hours of relaxation this morning," he smiled, grinning at Harry, who was smiling and picking at his toast with the air of someone who was both worried, nervous and excited. "I know Harry and Ron have a Quidditch match at eleven o' clock."

"Keeping again?" Hermione asked Ron, smiling as she went over to the window and looking outside. Nothing interesting.

Ron grinned. "Yeah, Dennis Creevey hurt his arm, so Dumbledore asked if I'd fill in for this match."

"Gryffindor versus Slytherin," Sirius said with a grin, a slightly ironic twist to his expression that they all understood. "Rather symbolic for a first match this year, don't you think? Hope you two know 'Mione, Remus and I will all be there, cheering in red."

"Our hearts will be in our mouths." Hermione teased, grinning across at Remus. "So you two better show those snakes that the lions will always win."

"It's going to be nasty, Harry," Ron sighed. "Even though Malfoy against you - no comparison, mate."

Harry shook his head. "They'll be playing dirty today. Half those gits are the kids of Death Eaters. It's more than a match, so being the better team won't necessarily help us."

"But a few well-placed hexes and defenses from the sidelines will." Hermione pointed out, headng back towards the table and her chair, one which was positioned _very_ close to Sirius. 

"'Mione, you can't interfere, that's against school rules!" both Ron and Harry looked scandalized, if not a little amused and eager.

Remus chuckled. "Maybe so, but the rule doesn't apply for long-time graduates and ex-teachers, now does it? Don't worry; we'll be there to make sure you two stay safely on your brooms."

"Yeah, I'm looking forward to cursing Draco Malfoy." Sirius said with a mixture of amused eagerness and grimness.

Hermione paused mid-step and raised her eyebrows at him. "What do _you_ have against him?" she wondered, sitting down unbearably close to Sirius because their legs brushed and she could feel his body heat radiate.

"Harry told me he's been making a play for you lately, and asked you to go out with him three days ago." Sirius stated point-blank.

Remus dived behind his book, clearly to conceal his amusement. Ron's eyes popped wide and Harry's jaw dropped. Hermione felt her own heart stop.

"Pardon?" She squeaked, managing to shoot Harry a weak glare for that treachery. He shrugged helplessly, looking like he was fighting laughter.

"Well, yeah. He's got no right, and so I'm going to hex him."

This sounded so like the Marauder that they all knew and loved that Hermione would have been content to let the matter drop, had Ron not chosen that moment to ask a question that was obviously causing him great curiosity and the semblance of a snigger.

"Sirius, you jealous, mate?"

Remus's eyes, brimming with laughter, appeared over the top of his book. Hermione choked on her own tongue, and almost did so again when Sirius turned slightly his his chair and slipped his arms around her, pulling her closer in something of a cuddle. Ron looked like he was in danger of breaking his jaw on the floor.

Sirius coughed. "Uh - well - I wouldn't say I was 'jealous' persay - "

Hermione looked up at him. "You're _jealous?_" She asked, amazed, feeling a blush tinge her cheeks. If Sirius was protectively jealous . . . that meant he had _some_ feelings for her other than their inferno-resembling desire.

"All right." He mumbled. "Yes, I'm jealous."

"But why?" she demanded, perplexed. "I don't feel _anything_ for Malfoy, except for loathing and scorn. I don't even think he's good-looking and I most certainly don't love him. I lo - " she broke off hurriedly. Apart from the stares she was receiving from her the other three people closest to her in the world, it wouldn't do to tell Sirius that she was in love with him!

He tightened his arms around her waist and lowered his head, with its sexy shadow of stubble, to nuzzle her neck. "That helps." he murmured against her skin, which was flaming hot from emotion, desire and a flicker of embarrassment.

"Ahem." Remus cleared his throat rather shakily, his voice quivering with obvious mirth. "As much as I hate to ruin an obviously special moment, I'd like to inform you both that this is a breakfast table and there are three other people here on the verge of losing their appetites."

Sirius and Hermione both laughed, and Hermione said sheepishly: "Sorry."

"All right." Harry dropped his bit of toast and looked between them closely. "Since 'Mione will blush and stare at her plate, or worse, tell me to mind my own business - " his eyes twinkled. " - Sirius, are you and Hermione together?"

"Mind your own business." Hermione couldn't resist rejoinding, smiling.

Sirius nodded. "Yeah." he said simply. He sighed. "Listen, Harry, I know it's probably not what you had in mind, and it's probably weird for you guys - I mean James's son's best friend and James's best friend - but - but I can't stay away." (Hermione's jaw dropped)

"Well, you're right about the weird part, but that just takes getting used to," Ron said cheerfully, and Hermione noticed the wink he exchanged with Remus. "And at least, this gives us all something to take our minds off You-Know - _Voldemort_ - so it works out."

"Yeah, Sirius, are you guys kidding? I think its pretty cool!" Harry said. "Sure, it's not exactly the picture I had in mind, but the more I think about it, the more I figure there's no pair I'd rather see than my godfather with my best friend."

Remus grinned. "I did tell you, Sirius, that your concerns were misplaced."

"Don't you two have practice?" Hermione said quickly, eager to get rid of the two keen stares focused on her, as much as she loved them both. They grinned and hopped up.

"So we'll see you at the match," Harry said. "Sirius, keep the hexes in mind for Malfoy, I'll get him as close to the Gryffindor stands as possible."

Ron grinned. "Yeah, after all, I wouldn't want any other guy - regardless of the paternal-Death-Eater status - messing with _my_ girl."

Harry slapped him a discreet high-five, Remus doubled over with laughter, Hermione blushed and glared at Ron, and Sirius laughed, flushing slightly at the whole 'my girl' inclusion.

And for those moments, there were zero thoughts of Lord Voldemort.

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: The next update may take a couple of days (unless I can finish the chapter today), but I hope to finish the story before I go out of town (waaah!) on Saturday or Tuesday - please keep reviewing and if there are any suggestions you guys have to make, make them! Anyway, enjoy the story (as always)! 


	9. Roaring Magic

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way. And I definitely own the two prophecies!   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Nine: Roaring Magic   
  
*   
  
**   
  


When Hermione, Sirius and Remus Apparated outside the main gates of the Hogwarts grounds, the impatient cheers and screams from the students waiting in the stands for the teams to come out could be heard loud and clear.

"I guess that's our cue to join them." Hermione grinned.

As they walked in through the gates that magically opened to let them in, there were loud _Crack!_s behind them, and a voice called: "Hey, Order-Pack hybrids!"

Hermione smiled as they turned around. Only one person in the world would call them Order of the Phoenix-cum-Pack hybrids, and she was standing with Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Mundungus Fletcher, her hair a violent shade of pink that changed to violet as they walked towards the three at the gates.

"'Llo, people," Dung greeted them cheerfully. "Go' your wan' ready, Sirius?"

Hermione raised her eyebrows accusingly at Sirius, who shrugged. "What? I couldn't resist telling them."

"Yeah, and we're mighty pleased, I can tell you that!" the woman chuckled. "Who better to suit my renegade uncle, I ask you."

"Nice to see you too, Tonks." Sirius groaned, always insulted when Tonks insisted on referring to him as her uncle - it made him feel old, and with a 17-year-old 'girlfriend', that really didn't help.

"So, been practicing your duelling, youngster?" Moody growled at Hermione with one of his most friendly looks. "We've all got a few tricks up our sleeves for the Slytherins today too - don't think Dumbledore will be too pleased, but he'll be glad at heart, you know him."

"None of us are going to rest easy until we find out Voldemort's location, Moody," Remus told him. "The Order hasn't exactly been helpful." he added teasingly.

"Come, Remus, we've been trying," Kingsley said in his deep voice. "But the man isn't a snake for nothing, you know."

The cheers suddenly grew louder.

"I think it's time to go." Hermione said.

They approached the Quidditch pitch and found seats in the Gryffindor stands near Ginny, Dean, Lavender, Parvati and Neville. Parvati seemed particularly interested in Sirius, who, with his haircut and un-sunken handsome looks, did not resemble the Sirius Black the magical world still feared somewhat much.

"Hey, Professor Lupin, Professor Moody!" Dean greeted them cheerfully. "How come you came for the match?"

"Let's just say it's a special match, boy," Moody growled with the smile that twisted his face.

Hermione was sitting right behind Tonks (who was entertaining Parvati and Lavender with her various noses), with Sirius and Neville on either side of her. She felt a poke, and looked at Neville. "Hey there, Neville, how've you been?"

"All right," he responded. "It's going to be a really scary match, isn't it? I mean - I've seen the things the teams have been trying to do to each other all morning."

Hermione nodded, and tried to quell the flutter of anxiety at the thought of Harry and Ron up there, wandless against the Slytherin team, and relatively vulnerable.

"Looks like we weren't the only ones interested in the match," she heard Remus say quietly to Kingsley and Sirius, who both turned their heads.

Hermione felt Sirius's hand close around hers, and his expression darkened. "Death Eater scum." She heard Moody distinctly snarl, making Tonks look up and scowl across the stands. Lucius Malfoy, Adrian Crabbe and Dan Nott were sitting with the Slytherins, darkly observing the Gryffindor section and no doubt there to 'support' their sons and send a very clear message.

Mundungus, she noticed, had fallen asleep.

The match hadn't even begun and already there was enough tension in the air to resemble a battlefield's calm before the storm.

When the teams came out of the changing rooms and mounted their brooms, there was indeed a storm of deafening cheering, shrieks and boos from all sides of the crowd. Hermione crossed her fingers tightly, gripped Sirius's hand hard with her other and shrieked herself hoarse, her eyes fixed on Harry and Ron, who were grinning and looking admirably at ease. Malfoy, too, she noticed with a scowl, looked unbearably arrogant and he flew so close to Gryffindor stands that she could almost see the unmistakable glint in his eyes as they flicked to her for a moment.

And also unmistakably, she heard Sirius utter a low growl, and couldn't help smiling.

Madam Hooch signalled for the captains to shake hands, and Harry and Malfoy stepped forward, and it looked like they were trying to break each other's wrists. Then Madam Hooch blew her whistle and the teams took off into the air, admist a storm of cheers.

Seamus, who was now a Chaser on the team, got the Quaffle.

The Gryffinor-Slytherin Quidditch match had begun.

  
***   


It was about a quarter of an hour later, fifteen minutes that had been packed with unbearable tension as Gryffindor scored thirty points and the Slytherins grew more violent, that Ginny suddenly let out a squeal of distress. "Ron!" She squeaked, pointing at the goalposts at the redhaired Keeper.

Hermione snapped her gaze upwards and felt her heart drop. Ron's broom was shaking violently, so violently that she looked like he might fall off, and his face, she could see, was pale from strain and fear. Nobody else had noticed, because Harry and Malfoy were in a streaking dive, both fighting to gain the lead in pursuit of what must have been the Snitch.

Across the pitch, Nott Senior was muttering non-stop under his breath, his evil eyes focused on Ron.

"_Silencio._" Five voices muttered at the same time. A streak of invisible light flew across the pitch and Nott's expression suddenly changed. Ron's broom steadied itself.

"Eh? Wha'appened?" Dung drawled dazedly, finally awaking at the sounds of Sirius, Moody and Tonks cursing at the top of their lungs.

Remus patted him on the shoulder. "Go back to sleep, Dung, we'll wake you when the match is over."

"Aw'rite."

"Those - those _bastards_." Hermione swore angrily, her fists white with rage as she watched Ron regain his balance.

Sirius and Neville both looked at her. "Why, 'Mione, I'm impressed." Sirius teased, winking at Neville.

She smirked.

A while later, Madam Hooch blew the whistle for half-time. Normally, Quidditch matches didn't have half-times (they didn't even have halves, because no one knew when they would end), but everyone could plainly see why it was necessary this time. Professors McGonagall and Sprout, Hermione could see, were staring at the Slytherins, white with suppressed rage.

Hermione stood up, narrowing her eyes at the Slytherin parents. "I'm going to go get a glass of pumpkin juice," she said calmly to the large group around her. "Anyone want anything?"

"I'll have one too," Neville piped up.

"Sure thing." Hermione nodded. Behind her, Hagrid had appeared, having obviously seen the match from his cabin so far. He looked enraged and began venting at once with Remus and Kingsley, who tried to calm him down, and with Moody, who only emphasised his points by smacking his fist. Hermione looked at Sirius for a second; he was staring at her, and she knew he was trying to figure out what she was doing. "Tonks, come with me, would you?" She asked the Metamorphagus.

Tonks obligingly hopped up. "Let's go." She said cheerfully.

Hermione led the way down into the circular path that led through the stands and towards the refreshment counter. As they disappeared from view of the Gryffindors for a moment, Hermione knew Sirius had been watching them all the way. "I need you to do something for me," She asked Tonks.

The woman grinned. "I thought you might. Speak, and I shall obey."

Hermione smiled slightly. "Over here," She indicated Pansy Parkinson, who was standing by the pumpkin juice. No one else was in sight. She pulled out her wand. "_Stupefy._" The Slytherin girl keeled over, Stunned.

Tonks' eyebrows shot up. "Well!"

"Can you become her?" Hermione asked. "Take on her features? She was sitting very closely to Lucius Malfoy, and if you could take her place for the match, you could slyly deflect his spells and prevent him from even realizing what's hit him - Auror skills, remember? The others need to concentrate on keeping Malfoy Junior, and the rest of the team's tricks at bay, and Remus and I can handle Nott and Crabbe."

Tonks's mouth broke into a wide, appreciative grin. "Lucius Malfoy . . . I like it. And I like you, Hermione, so I'll be more than happy to do this." She screwed up her face, watching Pansy, and the next second, Pansy Parkinson stood in front of Hermione. "Time to get into action." She winked and strolled away.

Hermione watched until Tonks was safely, and innocently, sitting in the Slytherin stands with a glass of juice and then turned to the Stunned, real Parkinson. "_Invisego._" she smiled, pointing her wand at the unconscious body. It vanished, and Hermione bent down and tugged it into a corner between two beams of the stands. Pansy would stay there, Stunned and invisible, until Hermione came back.

Wicked as it was, it gave her a flicker of satisfaction to get one over the girl who had taunted and rivalled her for years.

Turning around, she headed back to her place. The members of the Order and the Pack stared at her as she approached, and Hermione could see a flicker of amused understanding in Remus's eyes.

"Where's Tonks?" Ginny asked, frowning, puzzled.

"She had something to do." Hermione replied blithely, tilting her head ever so slightly in the direction of the Slytherin stands. Ginny looked across and seemed to understand something, because she stifled a giggle.

Sirius frowned at Hermione. "Where'd you go?" he asked.

"Pumpkin juice." She replied, staring at the pitch where the teams were regrouping to begin the second part of the match.

"Oh come on," Sirius scorned, a slight edge to his voice. "You can't lie to me _that_ easily. You don't have any juice in your hand and I noticed you forgot to bring Neville any."

Hermione glanced apologetically at Neville. "Yeah well, what does it matter where I went?" she asked in as level a tone as she could. Sirius was rather angry about something, and she wasn't exactly desperate to provoke him.

"It matters if you were with Malfoy Junior."

"Excuse me?" Hermione's jaw dropped.

Sirius crossed his arms over his chest, his jaw set. "He did disappear off the pitch for a while when you were gone."

"And the possibility that he was talking to his father or one of his father's cronies, for ideas to sabotage Harry, didn't enter your mind?" She demanded indignantly. They were both keeping their voices low, so as not to attract any attention, but she could feel Remus's concern.

"If that was what happened, then where did _you_ go?" Sirius asked in a hard voice, the angry muscle active again. Hermione was growing angry herself, and was feeling considerably hurt at Sirius's lack of trust, so she didn't see the flicker of pain in his eyes.

She narrowed her eyes at the Quidditch players, mounting their brooms again. "That's none of your business." she said evenly, keeping the coldness out of her voice as much as possible. Her heart was beginning to feel like a needle was pricking it.

"Really?" Sirius's voice was tightly controlled, but it shook with the reckless anger that the Marauder was so well-known for. "Then why do I have to believe you weren't with Malfoy?"

"Padfoot . . ." Remus's voice spoke up quietly.

"Stay out of this, Moony!" Sirius barked.

Hermione felt her hackles rise, and turned in her seat to face Sirius fully. "There's a simple thing called trust, Sirius, but you obviously don't feel that." her voice was low, but vibrated with intense anger. "Would it make you feel better, I wonder, if I told you I _was_ with Malfoy? Would you actually _believe_ me, I wonder, if I said that where I was was actually down by the refreshment stand, pressed between two beams and getting my tongue sucked out by Malfoy?"

She regretted the words as soon as they were out, because Sirius's face drained of all colour and there was a clear flash of pain in his dark eyes. He broke the stare and turned his gaze to the Quidditch pitch.

"I'm sorry." She said, swallowing hard to fight back tears. "I didn't mean that. Sirius."

"Well, at least you're capable of honesty." His voice was hard, indifferent.

Forget a needle. This was a knife, stabbing her brutally with every word. "You actually believe I was with Malfoy?" She choked out.

He didn't reply. Hermione blinked back tears. Forget Hogwarts and forget getting into trouble for interferring. She tilted her wand at Harry, and then at Ron, and for both, muttered: "_Protectus_." A bubble of highly advanced light exploded from her wand and encircled them both, and their brooms, an invisible shield against curses and hexes. Her work was done here.

"They should be safe." She said quietly, directing this to the rest of the group, who were all shifting awkwardly and sympathetically. Slowly, she turned around and slipped past Neville through the crowd and down out of the stands. For a moment, she stood at the bottom of the pitch, watching the streaks of red and green high above.

"Good luck." She murmured, before heading towards the winding path that led down to the gates. Before she could get out of the pitch area, however, the sound of explosive cheering suddenly broke through her thoughts and she whirled around to see red streaks descending to the ground and equally scarlet colors flocking from the stands.

Gryffindor won. Harry won. This time, the Pack had won.

She tried to feel elated, but it was only a quiver of satisfaction that pierced her emotions. With a sigh, she remembered that she had something to do and went back to the refreshment stand. With her foot, she found the solid shape between the beams and murmured the counter-curse. Pansy's frame appeared. Hermione sighed. "_Enervate_." - The girl stirred, and Hermione decided it was time for her to go.

She had just turned around the bend in the circular passageway of beams when a blond figure in green robes swaggered towards her. _Just what I need right now . . ._ She thought with a sigh.

"Enjoyed the match, Granger?" Malfoy asked with a vicious sneer.

"Yeah, I'd say it was pretty good." Hermione crossed her arms. "Harry and Ron played great."

Malfoy's eyes narrowed and in a quick movement, he was standing right in front her, and she was pushed against a beam, with no escape route. Malfoy was sweaty, and it wasn't the sexy sheen that Sirius had, but a filthy, grimy sort that didn't go well with his sour expression.

"I may have lost to your beloved Potter," Malfoy snarled, "But I'm not going to lose this little game. How do you think Potter and Weasely will feel when they find out I got the better of their precious little best friend?"

"Stay away from me." Hermione snapped, beginning to feel a litle nervous, because with her wand tucked into her robe pockets, and Malfoy's hands beginning to snake onto her body, she was helpless. "I wouldn't kiss you if you - "

"Were the last man on earth?" Malfoy mocked. "A bit corny, don't you think?" He tried to kiss her, but she ducked her head. _Oh God, somebody come rescue me._

The sound of footsteps jerked Malfoy's roving head back, and a cool voice said, "Maybe I was a fool, but I didn't expect this."

Hermione closed her eyes. Anyone but him.

Malfoy glowered at Sirius. "What do you want, Black?" he demanded angrily. "Granger and I were busy."

"So I could see." Sirius's expression was sardonic. "But it looks like she's not in the mood right now for whatever you had in mind, so maybe you could back off before I utter the words 'Avada Kadavra' with my wand out. You should know by now that I'm well-known as a 'killer'."

Malfoy took a few steps away from Hermione, who felt her entire body relax with relief and then tighten again because of Sirius standing there so accusingly. "Next time, Granger," he drawled coldly, "You won't be able to rebuff me so easily."

He stalked off, and Sirius's brow furrowed slightly, as if what Malfoy had said that surprised him. Hermione felt sick, and risked a glance in Sirius's direction. He looked at her, and he opened his mouth to speak, but Hermione shook her head slightly.

At that moment, Tonks appeared, racing towards them around the bend that Malfoy had disappeared around. She skidded to a halt, looking wildly excited.

"What is it?" Hermione asked softly.

Tonks seemed to sense the tension, but she didn't comment. Instead, she grinned broadly. "Does Glenwood moor mean anything to you?"

"Huh?" Sirius frowned, and he looked between Hermione and Tonks, his expression draining slightly as he seemed to finally understand what Hermione had really been off doing. He looked at her, but she refused to meet his eyes.

"According to a few words from Lucius Malfoy," Tonks said with a smug smile, "Glenwood moor is where 'the Dark Lord' hangs around these days."

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
A/N: The next update may take a couple of days (unless I can finish another chapter in the next couple of hours), but I hope to finish the story before I go out of town on Saturday or Tuesday - please keep reviewing, and I'll keep writing! Enjoy! --> 


	10. The Arms of Morpheus

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way. And I definitely own the two prophecies!   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Ten: The Arms of Morpheus   
  
*   
  
**   
  


Back in Grimmauld Place, Remus allowed Harry and Ron their hour of euphoria, which was duly spent in shouts of triumph and excitement, high-fives and playful hexes, laughter and basically non-stop jumping that threatened to wear the stuffing out of Remus's couch.

"We wiped the _pitch_ with those Slytherin scum!" Ron yelled, seizing Hermione's wrists and forcing her to dance around the room with him. She couldn't help but laugh, and managed to disentangle herself with Harry's help.

Harry grinned broadly. "Yeah, I have to admit that was an incredible face-off," he enthused. "Ron, I've never seen you Keep like that in my life!"

"Don't forget your dive, mate, Malfoy didn't have a chance at keeping up!"

"I have to admit, that really was excellent playing and you both were admirably sportsman-like," Remus agreed, smiling. "But another match like that may just cause a heart attack for all spectators, in all honesty."

There was a lot of laughter at this, and Sirius slapped Ron on the back and then smiled at Harry. "James would have been proud, Harry, he really, really would have."

"That's good to know." Harry grinned, a spark of pride in his and Ron's eyes that made Hermione smile. It was good to see them on such a high.

This went on for some time, and it was only when Remus announced that lunch had arrived on a series of trays, via Floo Powder in the fireplace, from the Burrow with a note: "Congratulations - love, Molly, Arthur, Bill, Charlie, Fred and George", that Harry and Ron could be calmed down somewhat (although very minimally).

Hermione rather reluctantly spoke up now: "We know where Voldemort is."

That certainly stopped them from leaping around the room, and they turned to her in surprise. "Really?" Ron asked in a hushed voice. "You're sure?"

"It came out of Lucius Malfoy's mouth." Sirius said gruffly. Hermione stared fixedly out of the window, unwilling to turn towards him. They hadn't spoken since coming back after the match, and she wasn't about to begin - he was the one who hadn't trusted her, after all.

Harry looked a little skeptical. "Malfoy? How can we be sure it's not a trap?"

"Because 'Pansy Parkinson' was the one to overhear him talking to Adrian Crabbe in the Slytherin stands."

Ron's jaw dropped and Harry snorted with laughter. "Yeah, right, and you're believing what a _Slytherin_ has to say? Honestly, Sirius, as a Marauder and a Warrior, haven't you learned anything?"

Remus smiled at Hermione, who looked at him then. "Well, normally none of us would have taken the word of Parkinson, but as it turned out, it wasn't the real Parkinson who overheard the conversation but a Metamorphagus by the name of Nymphadora Tonks."

"Merlin's beard!" Ron gasped. "Tonks took Parkinson's place? Wow. How'd she manage that?"

"It was Hermione's idea." Sirius growled out.

"I should have known." Harry grinned and Ron laughed appreciatively and they both asked: "So how'd you do it?"

Hermione shrugged, looking at them. "Took Tonks down to the refreshment stand where that _cow_ was. Stunned her and turned her invisible and pushed her between two beams, where I found her later and performed the counter-curses. Asked Tonks to take her place; Tonks was only too happy to. I guess it paid off."

"_Brilliant!_" Ron gawked.

"You don't sound too happy about it," Harry commented shrewdly. "I understand apprehension because a battle seems only three days away now, but you look a little - well - sad. What's wrong, 'Mione?"

"Nothing." Hermione said quickly, clenching her teeth and avoiding Sirius's gaze. "Absolutely nothing."

"Perhaps we should get down to some details to do with Glenwood moor, which is the location, by the way," Remus interposed quickly because Ron looked like he might ask something more, and he glanced between Hermione and Sirius with a gentle, sympathetic look in his eyes. "I've never been there. Anyone here know the place?"

Heads were shaken all around, and Hermione shrugged. "Okay then, two of us should probably Apparate there and scout the area's periphery to give us some idea of hiding places and traps, keeping out of Voldemort's change, for Merlin's sake. Harry, you and Ron?" She asked. "If you're not too tired."

"Give us an hour after lunch and we'll get over there." Harry promised.

Ron grinned, obviously eager to get into action despite his obvious worries. "And we'll be careful," he said to Hermione, before she could say it. She smiled.

"Good. Then another two of us should go to Dumbledore now and explain what we know to him and the Order and discuss strategies, also so that they can be prepared to station themselves at the periphery of the moor and back us up if we need it. Remus?"

He nodded. "Sirius and I will Apparate back to Hogwarts after lunch." He said.

Sirius frowned, and Hermione could feel his gaze on her. "I'd rather - " he began, but Remus cut him off.

"We're going, Sirius. Trust me on this. I think I need to talk to you in any case."

Harry and Ron glanced at each other and then at Hermione and she gave them a quick look which she knew explained the gist of the situation. Harry nodded and she knew they'd understood and knew not to say anything about it.

"What're you going to do?" Ron asked her.

"My job - provide the weapons," She said quietly, stepping away from the window and going towards her cauldron and ingredients behind the counter. "I have spells to find and certain potions to brew."

  
***   


Glenwood moor turned out to be a marshy, dark area shadowed by sparsely-scattered trees and caves set in a cliff of rock. Harry and Ron Apparated by the fence separating the miles of rolling moor from the deserted farms beyond, and they instantly felt the chill that Voldemort seemed to project for a radius of miles around him.

"Where are we?" Ron asked. "Somewhere in Scotland?"

Harry shrugged. "Dunno. Come on, let's check this place out." In the far distance, they could see the cliffside, and neither of them had any doubt that that was where Voldemort 'lived', and despite the flood of anger that Harry felt, he knew they had to stay a safe distance from the cliffside - they needed the entire Pack to end this battle, and rushing recklessly in would only get them killed.

They walked slowly through the moor, and as they walked past a cluster of trees which cast dark shadows around and within their group, Harry observed a sort of uneven patch in front of them.

"Hang on." He held out an arm to stop Ron from walking. "Is there a rock around here?"

Ron picked up a large pebble. "This do?" he asked, frowning.

Harry took the pebble and tossed it at the patch. It hit with a squishy sound and then there was a disgusting squelching sound as the rock was sucked below the surface of the patch. Ron looked absolutely repulsed. "Quicksand." he grunted. "The perfect trap." He pulled out the piece of parchment and quill Hermione had given them and began to sketch the area roughly, marking the cluster of trees and the cliffside and the quicksand. Harry stood beside him, wand out, alert and ready in case some Death Eater was to find them and attack.

A crunching sound across the quicksand made him turn in that direction, eyes narrowing. It was a ferret. Ron looked up, tucking the parchment and quill safely away. "What - " he began, but never finished.

"_Telekinetus!_" A voice yelled from the cluster of trees behind them. Harry dived out of the way, but Ron, still on his knees, was hit by the blast of purple light and lifted up into the air, and flung, much to Harry's horror, into the quicksand.

"RON!" Harry yelled in alarm.

The Death Eater, alone, stepped out of the trees. It was Nott, and he was smiling evilly. "Alone and vulnerable, Potter?" he drawled in his slimy voice. "How the Dark Lord will reward me for this . . ."

"_Impedimenta!_" Harry bellowed, and the Death Eater's movements slowed down, his face screwing up in anger. Harry turned quickly to the quicksand and pointed his wand at Ron, yelling urgently: "_Wingardium Leviosa!_"

Mercifully, the spell worked on a human. Ron was lifted, with that squelching sound and flailing, out of the quicksand and he fell to solid ground, gasping for breath, pale and shaking, and trying to straighten up.

"_Crucio!_"

Harry just managed to duck the terrible Cruciatus Curse from Nott, who had obviously broken free of the spell (Harry hadn't been pointing the wand at him earlier anyway) and regained his control over his movements. "Very clever, Potter," he sneered, "Using the flying charm to save your friend. A pity. _Avada - _"

"_Silencio!_" Harry blurted, screaming the first words he could think of, which weren't necessarily the best choice. This proved correct as Nott's voice was cut off, but the curse flew straight at Ron and hit him in the chest. Ron, staggering to his feet, fell over backwards, his body bruising. He lay still.

_He's not dead, Not didn't utter the incantation, he's in danger, but he's not dead, Harry! Merlin's beard, Ron, don't be dead! Oh God!_

Panic was beginning to overtake him, but then something else, something more powerful rose from his core as he realized the possibility that Nott had killed his best friend.

Rage.

Harry pointed his wand at the Death Eater with angry and urgent precision and yelled: "_Telekinetus!_"

Two people could use that spell, he thought viciously as the Death Eater flew up into the air, shrieking inhumanly, and Harry jerked his wand in the direction of the quicksand. Nott fell in with a squish and began to flail, screaming wildly and desperately. But Harry was past mercy and Nott was not his concern at that moment.

He raced around the patch of gooey death and grabbed Ron, limp, cold and motionless. "Time to leave." He muttered, looking down at Ron in panic. _Don't die on me, Ron, please, please, don't be dead!_

Before he Apparated both himself and Ron away from the moor, he managed to get one last glimpse of Nott in the quicksand.

The Death Eater sunk to his death.

  
***   


"_Collorputus_ magically locks doors," Hermione muttered aloud as she searched the books in front of her for useful hexes and curses that they already didn't know. She was standing at the kitchen counter, her cauldron brewing a few feet away. "What's the incantation for warding off vampires . . . no, why would we need that? Maybe the Pro - " she broke off hurriedly and turned towards the potion in her cauldron, which was beginning to froth. "Time for the six stirs anti-clockwise," she muttered with a hint of bitterness in her tone.

Sirius and Remus were with Dumbledore and the Order, and wouldn't be back for a while now. Harry and Ron would probably be a little while longer as well, although something uneasy and worrying was nagging at her. She sighed as her thoughts drifted to Sirius . . . _what do we do now? If he can't trust me . . . but was it all his fault? Maybe I provoked him a little . . . and I could have told him where I'd gone, he was only asking . . ._ She groaned.

_Crack!_

Hermione whirled around. The noise had come from outside the window and before she could hurry over to it, the door burst open and slammed shut. Mrs. Black began shrieking, but before Hermione could do anything, Harry stumbled into the room. His face was pale and sheened in panicked sweat, his body trembling. He was half-dragging, half-carrying a limp, bluish-white body with him.

_Dear God, no . . ._

It was Ron.

"'Mione!" Harry croaked out, tears visible in his eyes as he collapsed onto the couch in the corner of the table, Ron's body falling across his. "I tried - I couldn't - "

"Shhh . . . Harry, it wasn't your fault!" Hermione's voice shook, but she maintained her calm with all the effort she could muster; she had to stay calm for Harry, who was on the verge of a breakdown. She hurried over to them and gently heaved Ron off Harry and maneuvred him into a lying position across the couch. Harry got off and sank to the floor next to the couch, his eyes glazed and his body shaking hard.

Hermione knelt down beside the couch, her heart thudding so loudly that she was certain it would explode, but she swallowed the panic and pain and lifted Ron's eyelids. His eyes were motionless and still and his eyelids flopped back limply. His skin was cold.

"It - it was Nott," Harry croaked numbly, his voice sounding strangled and distant. "He's dead now . . . didn't get a chance to tell Voldemort we were here. He tried to use Avada Kadavra, I silenced him, but the spell hit Ron still . . . I screwed up . . ."

"_No,_ Harry!" Hermione said sharply. "You did _not_ screw up!"

"Ron . . ."

Hermione reached out and hugged Harry, and felt something wet on her shoulder. She tightened her arms around him, fighting back her own tears, and then pulled away gently to desperately check Ron's chest, neck and wrists.

There. A pulse beat. A fading, fading pulse beat.

"Harry." She said quietly, a flood of relief and fear filling her. "Ron's alive."

Harry's eyes flew open and he turned to her and then looked at Ron. "He's okay?" he asked, sounding as desperate as she felt.

She shook her head. "He's alive now, Harry, but he won't be for long. He's dying."

"But - there has to be something - something we can do!" Harry yelled, the tears filling his emerald eyes again. "'Mione, there has to be something! We can't - can't let him - "

Hermione stared down at Ron's cold, still face and her mind drifted back through seven years of friendship, loyalty, laughter and memories. She remembered the incident with the troll, when they'd first become friends, Ron sacrificing himself during McGonagall's chess game, their millions of arguments and fights, Ron and Harry plunging into the Chamber of Secrets and their elation to see her moving and well again, Ron breaking his leg in his race after Scabbers . . . loyalty towards his pets too.

"No, Harry," she said softly. "We're not going to let him die."

"So what can we do?" He asked urgently. He sounded less afraid now, and Hermione wryly realized he was certain she could perform some miracle now. She wasn't so sure . . .

She looked at him. "Go to Hogwarts and find Sirius and Remus, Dumbledore and the rest of the Order. Tell them what happened and explain to Dumbledore exactly what happened to Ron. He'll be able to find a cure for a silenced Avada Kadavra curse, I'm sure he will, within a few hours if we're lucky."

"A few hours, if we're lucky!" Harry's voice became strained. "'Mione, you said he's dying! A few _minutes_ may be enough to push him into death!"

"I know that, Harry." Hermione swallowed. "Just go, and do what I said, please. After you've spoken to Dumbledore, come back, and bring Remus and Sirius if they haven't already returned."

Harry stared at her for a long moment, and trust swallowed up the doubt in his eyes. He nodded, and looked at Ron for a moment. "I'll be back soon." He promised, and headed for the front door, through which he could Disapparate.

Hermione waited until she heard the _Crack_ and then checked Ron's pulse again. It was there, just faintly, just enough for her to know he was still alive. But Harry was right. It wouldn't last another few minutes, let alone hours.

_Oh Ron, how did this happen to you? Why you?_

She stood up abruptly and went to her cauldron. It was simmering and only the lacewigs needed to be added. She powdered them and sprinkled them into the potion, thanking Merlin that she'd had to the forethought to prepare for something like this . . . although nothing had really prepared her for the possibility of losing one of the Pack . . .

"Come on, hurry up." She cursed at the potion.

A moment later, it was ready. Hermione corked a vial full of the Stopper Death Brew and ran back to Ron's side. His pulse still beat, but almost imperceptibly now. Hermione closed her eyes, praying she hadn't made a mistake with the potion, and gently forced Ron's lip mouth open. She poured the contents of the vial down his throat and gently heaved his shoulders and head upwards to make sure it was swallowed and slid fully into his insides.

She stared at Ron as his head dropped back against the cushions limply. His body froze, almost like it was on ice. It was warmer now, warmer than it had been, but there was no heartbeat, no pulse, and no blood flow. His body was pale as death itself, but warm, proving to her infinite relief that he wasn't dead, but merely - frozen.

Merely locked into sleep until they released him.

Hermione sank down onto the carpet in front of the couch and leaned back against it, her head touching Ron's arm. She was alone now . . . there was no one here to witness the falling of the Angel . . . and she finally let her tears flow.

The _Crack_s outside alerted her to arrival of the rest of the Pack, and she brushed tears hurriedly away from her face and eyes and swallowed hard in an attempt to compose herself as best she could.

So when Sirius burst into the room with Harry and Remus close behind him, they found Ron lying motionless and unnaturally pale across the battered couch with Hermione sitting silently on the carpet in front of the couch, her knees tucked under her chin, her eyes swollen.

"'Mione . . ." Sirius said hoarsely, coming towards her. He knelt down and slid his arms around her. She hugged him, and his arm tightened securely around her. She could feel his own pain, and his own fear, but she also felt the emotion he was feeling for her. "I'm sorry." he choked out quietly.

She looked up at him, into his eyes that burned with something she couldn't read and found that she there was nothing to forgive. There was trust there, powerful trust that had been briefly overcome by jealousy earlier. She managed a smile, and then looked at Harry and Remus.

Harry hurried over to Ron. "What happened to him?" he asked. "What's wrong with him? He's warm but he's so pale, he's not moving, and there's no pulse!"

"I believe he's in stasis," Remus said with the same calm Hermione had used earlier, looking down at Hermione with an oddly proud, comforting expression in his eyes. "He's not dead, he's merely frozen in a state of being, until a cure can be found to revive him from the curse's effect. You used the Stopper Death Brew Snape taught you this year?"

Hermione nodded.

"Well done," both Sirius and Remus said together, relieved smiled lightening the shadows on their faces.

"So Ron won't die?" Harry asked, his shoulders sagging with weak relief as he sat down next to her and squeezed her hand.

She shook her head. "He's asleep, Harry. I locked him into a sleep that will keep him alive until we know how to save him."

  
**   
  
TBC.   
  
*   
  
To anyone who was confused about the chapter title, Morpheus is the God of Sleep, which is why I thought it was a suitable and interesting name to use here.  
  
A/N: I hope this chapter matched up to the rest of the story. Please keep reviewing, and thanks for the feedback so far! Enjoy! --> 


	11. Imperius

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way. And I definitely own the two prophecies!   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
**   
  
*   
  
~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Eleven: Imperius   
  
*   
  
**   
  


It was dawning on dusk when Dumbledore appeared into Grimmauld Place, his face weary and grave, but his eyes alight with a spark of something that made them all certain he had performed his miracle.

"Professor, could you - ?" Harry leaped up.

Dumbledore nodded. "There is a way to reverse the curse entombing Ron and restore him back to life and perfectly healthy."

There was a whoop of delight, but Hermione sensed something was wrong. "But?" She asked softly. Harry and Sirius froze and they and Remus looked at her.

"You miss nothing, Hermione," Dumbledore smiled slightly. "But," he said quietly, "The treatment will take days - three at the very least. And Ron must be given time to recover once he's conscious again."

There was dead silence in the room. Everyone knew what that meant.

"So . . ." Remus said slowly. "The Pack will be one short. Voldemort will have yet another advantage over us."

"Possibly, yes." Dumbledore nodded. "But the Order will be there, on the periphery of the moor, you must remember that. There really is no other option. We cannot put off the attack, as that isn't how prophecies work. You must work without Ron."

An incomplete Pack? One of their five sides vulnerable and empty? Hermione felt a shiver of fear and she wrapped her arms around her waist almost subconsciously. Sirius looked across at her and then at Dumbledore. "Isn't there some way - ?" he began.

"I'm afraid not." Dumbledore said with a sigh. "This was the only cure I could find to save Ron, and there's no way to shorten it - that might have an adverse affect on him."

"So we'll just have to do it without Ron," Harry said quietly. "As long as he's okay, right?"

Hermione nodded, and saw Sirius and Remus do the same. Dumbledore smiled and turned to Ron, lying still on the couch. "Excellent work with the brew, by the way," he commented, and with amazing strength, lifted Ron up into his arms. "I'll take him to St. Mungo's. Once he's conscious, we can have him transferred to the Hogwarts infirmary for recovery."

"Can I come with you now, Professor?" Harry asked, rather hesitantly. "Just to - you know - see him - you know - "

Hermione glanced at Sirius. They all knew Harry was feeling unaccountably guilty, so none of them had the heart to tell him he should probably stay so that they could prepare for the battle the day after tomorrow.

"Certainly, Harry," Dumbledore smiled. "But only for a little while, all right? The hospital employees must work alone."

With a _Crack!_, he disappeared, taking Ron with him. Harry looked at the others. "I'll be back soon." he assured them, before heading out to the door. A moment later, they heard the sound of him Disapparating.

Remus looked at them. "This is not going to be a pretty battle," he said quietly. "Without Ron, it'll be harder than it would have been with him. Voldemort's about to have the edge."

Sirius groaned. "Merlin's beard, Moony, we're all going crazy as it is; can't you strive for a little optimism?"

"Sorry." Remus chuckled. He sank down onto the couch Ron had just occupied and looked at Hermione, who was leaning against the counter opposite them silently.

Sirius looked at her too. "All right?" he asked gently.

She nodded, managing a smile for him. He looked so concerned; they both did. "I'll be fine." _As always,_ she thought with a touch of bitterness. _I'm always fine. They need me to be, and I can't let them down - not now._

"I'm glad to hear that," Remus smiled reassuringly and stood up again. "I think I'm going to go upstairs, check on Buckbeak, and get some sleep before dinner. Without Harry, we might as well put off duelling practice until after dinner." He shot Sirius an unreadable glance and then retreated up the stairs, his footsteps fading.

"And I do have homework." Hermione remembered with a sigh.

Sirius smirked. "Always responsible. Take a break, why don't you, 'Mione?"

"I've been putting this essay off for a week, Sirius, and you and I both know Snape's not about to make _any_ allowances."

"You want me to hex him for you?"

"As pleasurable as that no doubt will be, for both of us, I'll have to decline the offer and instead get to work on my essay."

Sirius groaned and came towards her. He slid his hands onto her waist. "Do you _have_ to work, 'Mione?" he drawled in his most sexy, suggestive voice. Her heart responded with a thump. Temptation was going to win out . . . 

"Sirius," she said as sternly as she could. "You can't do this . . . it's unfair . . ."

He sighed. "I guess you're right," he leaned down and kissed her, brushing his lips against hers and then kissing her harder before pulling back. "I should probably get some sleep too for a little while. Wake us up when Harry gets back, all right?"

"Sure." She smiled and watched him turn around and stroll towards the stairs. "Sweet dreams." He turned around for a second and grinned, and there was no mistaking what he was certain he'd dream about. She blushed. _I love you,_ she added silently, as he disappeared up the stairs, with a twinge of sadness, _And I wish I could tell you._

  
***   


The four remaining members of the Pack went out to Glenwood moor on the evening of the full moon and found a cave near the patch of quicksand. Ron's sketch of the area had helped greatly in planning and with his absence, it was good to know the members of the Order were waiting in the shadows beyond the fences, waiting for any sign that they needed help.

Remus, Hermione could see, was rather uneasy about having to be a werewolf in this battle - but they'd reassured him over and over again that he wouldn't hurt them. Harry was grimly set for battle, Sirius appeared to have the same reckless anger flowing through him - and she felt oddly solitary in her fear and apprehension.

"So," Harry spoke up, "Night isn't exactly going to be much of a cloak with a full moon, and Voldemort will probably sense me coming, but we have to be as silent as possible. When night falls, we go out towards the cliffside and if our timing's good, Remus will morph just as we reach the Death Eater guards. He takes them out or leads them away, and the rest of us go in further. From there, we can't know what will be waiting for us, but we do know Voldemort only has about fifteen Death Eaters in his power right now."

"And Nott is dead," Sirius added, "Which makes it fourteen."

"It shouldn't be too brutal." Harry nodded. "I'm sure - I'm sure we'll all make it."

There was a moment's silence. "We will." Hermione said in her calmest, most firm voice. They needed her to say it with conviction. "We'll win this battle and we'll all make it out."

"So how much time do we have till nightfall?" Remus asked.

Hermione glanced out of the cave. "About an hour."

Sirius grinned and conjured a flask of Butterbeer and mugs. "Well then, I think this calls for a drink to while the time away. I thought you and I might have Firewhiskeys, Moony, but then I remembered we can't exactly be drunk while doing battle."

"Whoever heard of a drunken werewolf?" Harry chuckled. Hermione giggled and the apprehensive tension was broken. 

"Merlin's beard, Padfoot." Remus groaned as Sirius began pouring out the Butterbeer rather cheerfully. He rolled his eyes, but was grinning nonetheless. Hermione and Harry exchanged grins. It was typical Sirius to be prepared for something like thirst.

Once they each had a full mug, Sirius cleared his throat exaggeratedly. Harry stifled a snort of laughter. "Oh please, Sirius, tell me you - the Marauder of sarcasm and mockery - tell me _you're_ not making a toast."

"Well, now that you mention it . . ."

"_Sirius!_"

"All right, all right, Harry, you can make the toast." Sirius said, grinning. "Besides, you know - " he coughed " - as a _Leader_ and all . . ." He ducked as Harry flung a hex at him.

"Okay, Harry, let's hear it." Remus chuckled.

"Yes, but not too sappy, Harry, we can't go into battle teary-eyed." Hermione added with a grin. She knew all the joking around was a way to ease the fears and worry they were all feeling, but it was certainly helping.

Harry shrugged. "Fine, fine. This isn't a toast, but I do have something to say. There've been many people who've done battle with Voldemort in the past, and not all of them have come out of it. Even if they're not here, I believe they're with us - some part of them will be with us in this battle, so I think the Pack has a better chance than we think, because we have Ron with us, the other Aurors, my mum and dad - " he broke off slightly, and Remus blinked sharply. Sirius squeezed Harry's shoulder. "So, I just want you guys to know we're not alone."

"Actually, I'd like to add something too," Remus said quietly, smiling at Harry. "I want to thank you - all of you - for helping me get over the demons that have haunted me. With the possible inclusion of James, I want to say that you've been the best friends a man - and a werewolf - could ever had and I'll never be able to say how grateful I am and how much I admire you. I don't believe this prophecy was the tie that pulled us together - we were together long before we'd heard of the Pack. Our bonds run deeper than any series of words, and I don't believe anything can tear these bonds apart."

Hermione wiped a stray tear off her cheek and swallowed hard. He was right; he and Harry were both right. They weren't alone, and as long as they had each other, they would never be alone. There was more to being a pack than being named one.

Sirius raised his mug. "Fine, now it's my turn, as the Marauder of sarcasm and mockery, to make the toast." he said, making everyone laugh. "I'll keep it short and sweet so that Harry doesn't hex me. To the Pack."

"To the Pack." they all echoed, clinking mugs.

  
***   


When night fell, they slid out of the cave and slipped through the shadows towards the looming cliffside in the distance. The moon was rising, full and bright, and the stars were twinkling with burning light so that it might as well have been daytime full of silvery rays instead of golden.

There was a thin group of trees about five hundred yards from the bottom of the cliffside, and as they slipped into their shadows, they could see the silhouettes of about ten Death Eaters standing guard in the large, flat plain between the trees and the cliff. Hermione briefly wondered if Voldemort had seen the Lunar Premonition and if he knew they would be coming tonight.

Slowly, the moon finished its rising, and Remus's body began to stiffen. Harry nodded, and he, Sirius and Hermione pointed their wands out of the trees and each muttered: "_Stupefy_"

Three of the Death Eaters dropped to the ground like rocks, Stunned. The others swivelled around at the bolts of green light and alarmed yells echoed as Hermione muttered something under her breath and the three Stunned Eaters were lifted up and thrown against a tree across the moor, where ropes shot from her wand bound them tightly to the bark.

"Where are they?" a voice roared: Dolohov. "Where are the Pack?"

"In those trees; over there!"

Remus's frame stiffened hard. Sirius murmured: "Good luck, Moony," and morphed into the shaggy, great black dog and stood in front of Harry and Hermione. Remus stumbled out into the full blast of the moonlight and there was a terrible howling sound. The Death Eater's shadows, racing towards the trees, froze. Remus morphed, his neck and face lengthened and hair sprouted over his body, claws growing.

A fully-fledged monster stood less than five feet from them.

"_Werewolf!_" A Death Eater shrieked.

Remus uttered a snarl and leaped at him. He pinned him to the ground and Padfoot made a whining noise. Hermione turned her head into Harry's shoulder as Remus tore the man's throat out.

The other Death Eaters, about three of them, fled. Remus raised his bloody muzzle and took off after them, chasing them far away, deep into the night of the moor, deep into the shadows until even their yells and screams of pain and anguish couldn't be heard.

Sirius morphed back into man. Hermione's lip quivered. "Shouldn't we - ?"

"He'll return when he's human again, don't worry." Sirius said reassuringly. His eyes focused on the flat plain of land, where the remaining two Death Eaters stood, unsure, and three more began running down a path leading from the cliff.

"Let's go." Harry nodded, and ran out of the trees, yelling, "Impedimenta!"

Hermione followed, and found herself facing Rodolphus Lestrange - again. He grinned evilly. "Not so clever, are you, on _our_ territory, Granger?" he spat.

"Guess there's only one way to find out." Hermione shrugged.

He sneered. "Right. _Avada Keda - _!"

"_Protego!_" Hermione shrieked, and the spell, before it was finished, was deflected. Her heart beat slowed down; she wasn't dead yet. Lestrange looked livid.

"Again!" he roared. "This is becoming old, Granger, surely you have some interesting tricks up your sleeve."

"_Expelliarmus!_" she yelled, and his wand flew from his grasp and landed in hers. Around her, Harry was taking out Crabbe and Lucius Malfoy had just appeared on the scene. Lestrange paled and began to back away. Hermione strode towards him, pointing both wands, and he backed further towards an uneven rocky ledge.

Suddenly, she heard Sirius yell: "'Mione!" at the same time that a woman's voice screeched: "_Crucio!_"

She dived to the ground, and the streak of red light missed her by a hair. Lestrange took the opportunity to leap at her. She leaped backwards, but his wand slid out of her grasp and he snatched it.

"Wives do have uses, after all." he chuckled wickedly, glancing across the land where a female figure was racing towards Sirius with an enraged snarl.

Bellatrix.

"So do Animagi." Hermione countered, raising her eyebrows. _Stay calm, keep him talking._

Lestrange sneered. "Perhaps. But you can't escape me forever now, Granger."

"I disagree. _Reducto!_" Hermione shrieked, pointing her wand up at the rocky ledge above him. The rocks shook and dislodged violently and came cascading down in a solid flood. Lestrange turned around and managed to utter an anguished yell before the rocks fell down upon him and buried him beneath their weight.

Across the plain, Sirius stepped out of the shadows to face his cousin. "Hello, Bella." he drawled with a slow, dangerous grin.

Her face turned white. "_Black?_ Sirius? It can't be!" she howled. "I _killed_ you! _I killed you!_"

"It's nice to know what filial affection you bear, Bella," he sneered. "Rather a shock, isn't it, when the victims of your crimes return to haunt you . . . to repay the debt . . ."

"_No!_" she howled, like a wounded animal. "Master, Master, help me! You can't be back, Black, you're dead! Master! You're dead! Master!"

Sirius stared at her, merciless. She was driving herself mad. "I'm alive, Bella." he told her coldly. "They brought me back. You didn't kill me, merely threw me into a veil that holds life and death in stasis. I'm perfectly alive."

Her hands shook as she pointed her wand at him again. "Then I will kill you now."

"I don't think so." Sirius jerked his head towards the other side of the plain, where Hermione was staring silently at the fall of rocks. "Your husband needs you right now."

Bellatrix swivelled around, in time to see the rocks crush Rodolphus Lestrange. "_Rudy!_" she shrieked, horror-struck. "No!" her tone turned enraged. "The girl! Granger! I'll _kill_ her! _Rudy!_" 

"_Petrificus Totalus_." Sirius said, almost lazily. Bellatrix froze and keeled over, her eyes moving in angry horror, a strange kind of cold grief filling them at the realization that her husband was dead. Sirius walked over to her and looked down at her. "I'm afraid I can't have you killing my Angel," he said quietly, before muttering: "_Invisego._" His cousin vanished and it would be a long time before anyone found her. Insane as it may sound, he couldn't bring himself to commit murder like that, to kill his own cousin . . .

He turned around and began to walk towards the middle of the field, and Hermione, turning around from the rocks with a twinge of regret, headed towards where Harry was duelling with Lucius Malfoy.

When Sirius and Hermione appeared behind Harry, his face, sweaty and weary, paled. "No, not more of you." he yelled angrily. "Master!"

"He's not coming, Malfoy," Sirius said coolly. "You're on your own."

"_Stupefy!_" Harry yelled in the moment's pause, and Malfoy fell over, Stunned.

For a moment, there was complete silence on the battlefield, and Hermione, Harry and Sirius all looked at each other. Then, so softly that it sent terrible shivers down Hermione's spine, a cold voice spoke.

"So. We meet again, Potter."

Voldemort had come.

Sirius's throat emitted a growl. Wormtail was standing in Voldemort's shadow, quivering under the glare Sirius was giving him.

"Settle your differences with Black, Wormtail," Voldemort drawled lazily. "I have no concern in this. Potter is my only interest here, and perhaps the girl. She's powerful, very powerful."

Harry grinned, much to Hermione's astonishment. "Bet you never thought a 'silly, little girl', like _my mother_, would be so powerful, did you, Riddle?"

Voldemort's thin nostrils flared in cold rage. "How dare you utter the filthy Muggle name I was given? How dare you insult me that way, Potter? You, who could never defeat me - the greatest sorcerer of all time!"

His voice rose like thunder, so that Wormtail flinched and the wind suddenly began to blow wildly. Through the cry of the wind, through which the five magical humans stood their ground, still and waiting, another howl sliced through the night.

"Remus." Sirius whispered hoarsely.

Hermione turned around, in time to see a werewolf, its muzzle covered in blood, erupt from the shadows and streak towards them. Voldemort's expression flickered and he screamed out a Shield Charm. He and Wormtail were enveloped in translucent light. The werewolf raced towards Harry, Hermione and Sirius, who stood frozen, and leaped at the one closest - Hermione.

She felt back onto the grass, and the werewolf stood over her, its muzzle frothing, its hot breath dangerously close to her.

"Remus," she choked out, terrified, "It's me - don't do this - it's me, Hermione." she looked into the eyes of the werewolf and didn't see cold hollows of black but light brown eyes. Remus was in there, she knew he was. "Remus, it's me, you have to fight the urge - you don't want to kill me, Remus, it's me - 'Mione."

For a split-second, everything froze, and then the werewolf let out a terrible, anguished shriek, like it was being tortured. And then, at that same instant that the animal leaped off Hermione and took a few steps back, looking like it was being forced, the clouds moved to cover the moon, and Remus Lupin demorphed back into a man.

"R-Remus." Wormtail squeaked, obviously terrified now when faced with both Sirius and Remus, who were both staring at him now.

Voldemort returned his cold attention to Harry. "You insulted me terribly, Potter," he said in his soft, deadly voice, "So I shall not do you the honour of a fair duel. Something more cruel, more vicious, I think, shall be your fate." He muttered something and snake-like ropes shot out of his wand and to Hermione's horror, bound Harry, Sirius and Remus tightly together and they fell to the floor, unable to break free, their wands inconveniently placed.

She had been left. Why, Hermione thought desperately? And then . . . like a vision from a dream, she felt a hazy image drift into a mind. The bowl in the Chamber of Terror . . . they were bound, she was standing . . . in a field.

_No! This can't be happening!_

And like a nightmare, that soft voice invaded her ears and her mind in a tune of mind-numbing bliss. _"Raise your wand . . . raise your wand . . ."_

The sensation was so incredible, she was floating in a pool of ecstasy, there was no pain, no worry, no sorrow. This was bliss, sheer, addictive bliss. Her wand arm rose and pointed at the three on the ground. They were shouting something, she could barely hear their words, and could barely comprehend them . . .

"No, Hermione, fight it! It's a curse!"

"Imperius Curse! It's not real! He's controlling you! Fight!"

"'Mione, it's us, remember? The Pack! Your pack! It's me, Sirius! Fight his control!"

_"They must die . . . do you understand? They must be tortured first . . . torture them . . . kill them . . . bleed them . . ."_

Why? Another voice, a small voice had woken inside her head, making her hesitate. Why should she torture them and kill them? Weren't they her friends? Didn't she care about Harry and Remus so deeply? Didn't she love Sirius?

_"Kill them! KILL THEM . . . bleed them . . . break them . . . they do not care . . . KILL THEM!"_

She pointed her wand with a steadier hand. This was what she was supposed to do, she couldn't listen to the cowardly part of her.

"No, 'Mione! You're stronger than that; you can fight him! Fight him for me, 'Mione! _I love you!_"

_I love you . . . _

The words penetrated her mind like the stab of a knife. Sirius loved her! He loved her; how could she kill them? How could she hurt them? He loved her.

"_Reducto!_" She screamed. The pain was terrible, the pain of breaking free of the Imperius curse and she fell to the ground, but the ropes dissolved under her charm and the three on the ground leaped up. Remus lunged at Wormtail, and both fell back against the grass near Harry and Sirius.

"Stupid girl!" Voldemort snarled angrily. "I shouldn't have wasted my time with you! _Avada - _"

Harry bellowed the Shield Charm before he could finish and a glowing wall of light appeared between the four of them and Voldemort. Wormtail broke free of Remus's grasp and squeaked: "_Expelliarmus!_"

Their wands flew to him, and he stood there, pointing his wand at them all. His wand moved to Sirius, who was glowering at him.

"Do it, Peter." he growled. "Show me you have the backbone to kill me. To kill us."

"Leave Black! Kill Potter! Kill Potter!" Voldemort shrieked from behind the Shield. "Kill Potter!"

Wormtail moved the wands to point at Harry, who stared back at him. Hermione watched Wormtail carefully. His face twitched and he looked like he was torn. She watched as tears filled his eyes and his hands began to shake. "_Avada - Ava - Avada - _" he croaked, unable to finish. To their astonishment, he fell to his knees sobbing something that sounded like 'James'.

Hermione remembered that Harry had once saved Pettigrew's life and that the debt had to repaid or the man would never be able to live with himself.

Remus snatched their wands back and restored them to their owners, handing Wormtail's wand to Sirius.

"Fool!" Voldemort howled in rage.

Harry cast down the Shield. "Sirius, Remus, get back a little and keep a hold on Wormtail. It's time my dad's debts were settled." his voice was firm, and cold, and sounded very unlike Harry. His eyes were fixed on Voldemort. "'Mione, you too. Get back."

"Harry - "

"Now. This is between the Dark Lord and me."

Hermione was actually scared. She'd never heard Harry like this, and apparently, neither had Voldemort. He looked uneasy for the first time.

"Do you think I'll wither and die, Potter?"

"I was hoping you'd do otherwise." Harry snarled.

Hermione remembered that their wands would not work against each other; if they both uttered a spell at the same time, they spells would not work. Was that what Harry wanted?

"_Cruc - _"

"_Protego!_" Harry bellowed at the same time. The jets of light met each other in mid-air and formed a gold band of connection. Voldemort blanched and Harry's mouth curved into a smile, because before their very eyes, Hermione watched people pull themselves out of Voldemort's wand.

Hermione's jaw dropped as Lily Potter landed on the ground, translucent and glowing. She smiled at Hermione and came to stand in front of her, protecting her. The next thing, James Potter had joined the dead victims wandering around Voldemort, taunting him while he screamed, angry and horrified.

"James!" Sirius and Remus croaked together. James mouth lifted in a grin and he moved to stand in front of his best friends, his gaze briefly lowering to Peter in a look of betrayal. Wormtail howled.

"_Reducto!_" Voldemort screamed. "_Reducto!_" Nothing happened.

Harry smiled at Voldemort. "I'm not a greater sorcerer than you are, Riddle. But look around you: I do have one thing that you will never understand and you will never hand, and that makes me the winner in this battle. Do you know what that one thing is?"

"Love?" Voldemort mocked, sounding slightly hysterical.

Harry laughed, but he looked a little uneasy now, a little regretful. "Humanity."

Hermione couldn't help but smile, and looking around, she saw that all the 'ghosts', as well as Sirius and Remus, were smiling too.

Harry closed his eyes for a moment, and with a wrench, broke the connection between the wands. "_Avada Kadavra_." he whispered. Hermione closed her eyes, feeling a prick of tears that she didn't understand.

When she opened her eyes again, the ghosts were gone and Voldemort lay on the ground, still. The snake-like face had faded into a more human one - the one of Tom Riddle. He was dead. At last, Lord Voldemort was gone.

Hermione moved forward to Harry and laid a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and hugged her. "You did it." She mumbled.

"No, 'Mione." He smiled. "_We_ did it."

  
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TBC.   
  
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A/N: Sorry for how long these chapters have taken to be uploaded! I hope you guys like this, and please, please review. Update coming soon! Enjoy. --> 


	12. Being a Pack

  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it all belongs to JK Rowling. I suppose I own the plot, in a way. And I definitely own the two prophecies!   
  
Summary: In dark times, prophecies predicted the rising of five who would have the power alone to defeat evil. They were the Pack.   
  
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~ The Pack ~   
  
Chapter Twelve: Being a Pack   
  
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Ron lay in a bed in the Hogwarts hospital wing. He looked rather pale, but otherwise completely all right, and he brightened considerably when the doors burst open the other members of the Pack trooped in unceremoniously.

"I should have known." Madam Pomfrey groaned, levelling Sirius and Remus with a stare. "And I thought you two had grown up years ago! Well, not you, Sirius . . ."

"It's time to rejoice, Poppy, and enjoy the little things in life," Sirius grinned, he and Remus playfully slinging their arms around her shoulders. "The Dark Lord is gone, the world - magical and Muggle - is safe and we're all alive. Isn't that cause for celebration?"

Poppy huffed.

"Hey," Ron said with a grin, sitting up as Hermione and Harry sat down on the edge of his bed and Sirius and Remus joined them. "You guys are all right?"

"We'll survive," Hermione said dryly, smiling.

Sirius grinned, irrepressible. "But we'll be scarred for life."

"It's really over?" Ron asked, his face falling slightly. "The Death Eaters, You-Know-Who - ?"

"It's over, mate." Harry assured him. He glanced down at the bedspread. "I'm sorry I let you end up here. If Hermione hadn't had the Stopper Death brew ready, you'd have been - "

"Harry, you're a prat," Ron stated calmly, making the others laugh. "I suspect you're addicted to guilt, but try to avoid it on such a beautiful day." He sighed. "I can't believe I let myself get hospitalized and missed all the action."

"It's okay, Ron," Hermione squeezed his hand. "It wasn't that exciting anyway." She crossed the fingers of her other hand behind her back and heard Harry and Sirius stifle snickers.

Remus smiled and spoke up. "Actually, Ron, you were a great help to us even without being there." He grinned. "Who drew the map for us? We could have all been quicksand mince. You gave us some great ideas for spells and as part of the Pack, part of this bond, you managed to help me pull out of the soul of the werewolf and gave 'Mione the strength to break free of Voldemort's Imperius Curse."

"He put you under the Imperius Curse?" Ron demanded of Hermione, eyes widening eagerly. "What happened? What did he try to make you do?"

"Kill them." Hermione nodded her head in the direction of the others. "Voldemort bound them on the ground and tried to get me to torture and kill them." She glanced at Sirius and his eyes burned into her for a moment. His jaw was tight with a kind of tension, and she decided they had a few things to talk about later . . .

"Were the Order there? How did they react when you told them it was over; that we'd won?"

"Dumbledore didn't exactly jump over the moon, but you could see the light in his eyes when we told him. As for the rest of the Order, they're actually on their way over here with Hogsmeade food for a party."

There was an audible groan from Madam Pomfrey from across the room. They laughed, and assured her they'd clean up after themselves.

"So tell me the whole story, right from the beginning, and don't leave anything out," Ron urged, leaning forward eagerly, any disappointment that he'd missed it obviously fading at the thought of a party and an exciting story. "Come on, spill all."

Hermione glanced at the others, smiling, and then they all looked at Remus. He pretended to sigh. "All right," he said, leaning back in the squashy chair he'd conjured up for himself. "I should probably begin at the point when Dumbledore took you - and Harry - off to St. Mungo's . . ."

  
***   


It was about halfway through the tremendous 'party' (one which was no doubt being echoed all over the magical world in celebration of the Pack and Voldemort's final downfall), that Hermione decided she couldn't take it anymore. She was burning with curiosity, emotion and desire and she _needed_ to know.

She marched across the hospital wing, where Sirius was patiently listening to yet another one of Tonks' mother Andromeda's tale of a bad relationship.

"I'm sorry, Andromeda," she said contritely, elbowing Sirius hard in the ribs. "But I need to speak to your cousin for just one second."

"Oh, but I - " Sirius was beginning to look nervous.

Andromeda laughed. "Oh go ahead, Hermione, you can steal him. Tonks tells me there's a lot you need to talk to him about anyway." She winked and Hermione grinned, trying not to blush. Sirius seemed like he was fighting back laughter as well, and he allowed himself to be dragged towards the door of the room.

"Where are we going?" He asked, intertwining his fingers in hers.

"Somewhere we can be alone."

The Room of Requirement was just down the hallway and up one of the staircases. Quickly, Hermione led Sirius there and pushed open the door than magically appeared in front of them - and stiffened. There was a magnificent four-poster, extremely comfortable-looking bed in the room.

Sirius began to laugh. "Hell, 'Mione, what kind of thoughts have you been having?"

"Very funny." She mumbled, well aware of the fact that she was blushing tremendously and that she _had_ been thinking along those lines . . . damn the man. "I actually needed to talk to you."

"You know," he murmured huskily, apparently ignoring her words and leaning closer, "You look very cute when you're blushing . . . kinda sexy . . ."

"Sirius . . ." She warned, beginning to lose control as his hands slid to her waist and the rough edge of his jaw grazed her collarbone as he lowered his head to kiss her neck. "I need to - " Her words were muffled as he kissed her and everything inside her, all the tension and the pain from the previous night's battle, turned to liquid jelly.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and let him carry her to the bed, where he laid her down and continued kissing her. She ran her nails gently over his shirt and them slipped under it, feeling the hard, taut muscles of his chest and the steady rhythm of his heart under her hands.

"They'll wonder where we are - " She gasped out, trying valiantly to control the unsteadiness in her voice and her bodily reactions as his lips moved lower. 

His laughter against her skin made her entire heated body tremble. "I don't think any of them will _wonder_ where we are." He breathed.

Hermione had a brief vision of Professor McGonagall _not_ wondering where she and Sirius was, and the image was enough to force her to near giggles. Instead, she tugged on Sirius's shoulders and as he pulled up, she traced her finger down his jaw and kissed him gently. His hands tightened on her waist tenderly, and she slowly leaned her head back against the soft, red silky pillows and whispered, "I love you, Sirius."

He pulled back slightly, raising his head to look her in the eye. She bit her lip, smiling slightly as she ran her fingers through his surprisingly soft, short hair and met his incredulous dark eyes. "You what?" he asked hoarsely.

"I love you." She said simply. "I have for a very long time, and when we thought you were dead . . ." she broke off, swallowing. "So what I wanted to know what whether you really meant what you said in the moor last night."

"You're asking me if I love you?" He began to laugh softly, and lowered his head to kiss her. "'Mione, I think even _Ron_ knew I loved you from even before the day of the Quidditch match. And Remus knew even before I did."

She smiled. She'd been so afraid that he'd blurted it out only as a way to get her to break free of the Curse that nothing could exceed her happiness now. This was what paradise was.

"So how do most people consummate their love, Mr. Black?" She asked with a slow smile.

He blinked and then grinned. "They set the world on fire. And I think that's what we're about to do . . ."

  
***   


By the time Sirius and Hermione got back to the hospital wing, it was entirely empty except for Harry and Remus sitting at Ron's bedside. When they walked in, all three looked up and Ron looked like he might say something greatly embarrassing, but Remus mercifully came to their rescue.

"There you two are!" He grinned. "We've been waiting to have a drink! I think Firewhiskeys are all right for tonight, Sirius."

"Brilliant." Sirius agreed enthusiastically, collapsing into one of the squashy armchairs. Hermione curled up on the arm of his chair, realizing after she did so that if he turned his head towards her, his mouth would be millimeters from her neck . . .

Remus poured out two mugs of Firewhiskey from nowhere and handed one to Sirius. Just when he was about to pour Harry a mug of Butterbeer, Harry, grinning, asked: "Since neither one of you are technically our parents, and since we're also all of age - although not twenty-one - and since this is like a special night, couldn't the three of us also have Firewhiskeys?"

Sirius began to laugh, and Ron asked eagerly: "Yeah, I've always wanted to try some! Can we, please?"

The two Marauders glanced at each other. "What do you think, Moony?" Sirius asked, grinning. "I don't have a problem. Nights - incredible nights - like these don't come along all the time, after all." Hermione felt her body stiffen at his words and with sheer willpower controlled the flush in her cheeks.

"Well, I don't have any problem either." Remus chuckled and there were instant cheers from Harry and Ron. Hermione shook her head, smiling. "All right; three more Firewhiskeys coming up."

Hermione tasted hers with some suspicion; she wasn't a great fan of alcohol. It burned her throat and was nowhere near as intoxicating as Sirius's kisses, but it was all right.

"You shouldn't sit so close to me," Sirius murmured softly suddenly, turning his head slightly towards her. "I can smell you . . . and it's not good for my self-control."

Hermione laughed. "You'll have to start practicing, won't you, because I'm not going anywhere." He grinned.

"All right, people!" Harry announced, waving his mug and grinning with a smile of lightheartedness that had been missing from their hearts for so long. "Time for another - quicker - toast! To approximately four years of friendship and loyalty, not including third year."

"Four years?" Ron's eyebrows shot up. "Harry, you sure the Firewhiskey hasn't gotten to you already?"

"Oh come on, Ron," Harry grinned. "We've been a close pack for a long time before the prophecy even entered our periphery!"

"Hear, hear!" Remus laughed.

Sirius grinned at Hermione. "Never thought I'd see the day my godson made such perfect sense!" he confessed, earning a playful glare from the godson in question.

"Yes, but Voldemort's not going to be the only terror in the magical world," She pointed out, reluctant to be a party-pooper. "There will be other evil and other Dark Lords."

"And we'll keep crushing them as they come, and you know as well as I do, 'Mione, that we'll always do it together."

Hermione downed the contents of her mug and smiled. They were all right, of course. They were less than two days after a battle that had decided the fate of the world, and yes, evil would definitely keep coming.

But there was no point worrying. The prophecies had shown them that. What would come, would come, and like they always had, they would rise to meet the blows when they came and weather the thunderstorms out together.

  
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THE END.   
  
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A/N: This has certainly been my longest story so far, and I'm sorry that the story's over. I think it's probably one of my better pieces of writing so I hope everyone has enjoyed it. Thanks a lot for reading and reviewing and I'll be back with another idea as soon as it hits me! Until then, love always and enjoy the stories! --> 


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